Dearly Beloved
by Spark of Life
Summary: Chapter 12: Sora and the gang, on orders from the king, head to Traverse Town to find the Knight Errant. However, a fight ensues. What they don't know is that there is others hiding in the shadows. SoraKairiRiku
1. Kairi

Dearly Beloved

Summary: Three friends held an unbreakable bond. After a catastrophe separates them, they begin to miss each other and it turns to love. Now, with some evil after them, they are left with an impossible choice: to love one and scorn the other. Takes place a year after Kingdom Hearts so Chain of Memories will not occur.

I decided to change the title from My Light, My Darkness, My Lover because the original title, to me, made no sense. And if you don't know the song Dearly Beloved, then please don't ever read another Kingdom Hearts fic ever again. (I kid) For those who say yeah but are really pretending, Dearly Beloved is the title song. So it's fitting to make it my title. Also I will use all of the songs from both Kingdom Hearts Soundtracks as chapter titles as much as possible. Therefore, if you own the song, you'll get the feel for my chapter.

EDIT: If you are reading this for the first time, then read on. For those who I've redirected from chapter 8, I mentioned that I was dividing the story into six arcs. This is Arc 1: The Heroes Arc. This arc will deal with what happened after the end of Kingdom Hearts. The arcs are...

Heroes Arc

Worlds Arc

Manifestation Arc

Generals Arc

Juusan Kikan Arc

Apocalypse Arc.

Please to note that there will be some minor changes to correspond to KHII. Also, I added a little bit of prose at the beginning of the chapters to sort of set the chapter. So enjoy

Pairings: Sora x Kairi x Riku (main pairing)

Chapter 1: Kairi

A very good song. Plus I like the variations that of the song.

* * *

_The Princess waits for them, the need is great, the need to see them again._

She remembers them with the utmost clarity.

Kairi spent most of her days ever since that incident on the island that they use to play. Sora and Riku. Her treasured friends were no longer here.

When the darkness attacked, the three of them were taken away from the island and life as they knew it changed. Kairi ended up at a place called the Lost Boy's Island.

She didn't remember how she got there but somehow there she was. She lost consciousness after that. She remembered in her dreams seeing a flying elf boy and a light glowing beside him. Then there was the moment that, well she didn't see him, but Kairi felt Riku's presence. It was dark, but soothing, like the night sky. She felt him caressing her face and telling her that it would be all right. She felt him move her to some sort of moving vessel. It would rock back and forth.

Not soon after, she felt a warm light. She immediately knew that it was Sora. His light and Riku's darkness comforted her. Somehow she knew that she would be all right.

Then, for some reason, the darkness took her away from the light. It was strange to say the least. Why would he do that? Was it her fault? No, it couldn't be. She had been unable to act for some reason.

The light found her again. It was then that she felt sadness and anger. The light and the darkness warred with each other. There were tears in her eyes. Why are they doing this, she cried.

Finally, the light was victorious. Although they were far apart, she could still feel them both. As the light came closer, she felt a darkness different from Riku's. However, some of his darkness was there. She didn't understand.

The light and darkness warred again. Again the light was victorious. This time, Riku's darkness was free from the other's darkness. She could feel the light holding her. It was comforting in the same way that the darkness was.

She awoke a moment later. The light known as Sora was gone. Before her was a duck and some sort of lanky dog creature. She argued with them concerning Sora but it was too late. A man appeared. He was tan and his eyes were evil. It was as if he had no soul. He came forward to kill them.

If it were not for Riku, she would have been destroyed. She ran away with the strange creatures, who introduced themselves later as Donald, Disney Castle's Count Wizard, and Goofy, the Captain of the Royal Guard. There was a Shadow Heartless after them. However, there was something off with its movements, Kairi realized.

Lo and behold, it was Sora. He had somehow transformed into a Heartless. Suddenly, Heartlesses attacked the group. Kairi, wanting to give Sora the same protection that she was given, protected him from the attack. A miracle happened. Sora had returned to his original form.

After leaving her at Traverse Town, Sora had promised to find Riku.

Somehow, she found her way to a dark place with giant doors. Sora and Riku were working together to close it, one from the outside and the other from the inside. They closed that door and Sora raised some sort of giant key in the air. When he did, the door disappeared.

She knew that something has happened that will prevent Sora and Riku from ever coming back home. She knew and yet she tried so desperately to hold on to Sora. But there was an invisible force pulling them apart. Kairi couldn't hold on and she let go.

When she had returned home, she went to tell Sora and Riku's parents that their sons would not return home. The strange thing was that neither parent remembered their children. Kairi was incredulous. How could a parent not remember their child, she wondered. She stormed in and went to their bedrooms. However, in each instance, there was nothing to prove that Sora or Riku ever existed. She went to the island in a mad rush to find evidence that the boys were not figments of her imagination. She went inside the cave that Sora had carved the picture of them. There was nothing there. Finally, she went to her friends, Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie. All of them looked at her as if she was crazy.

* * *

That was her story.

It has been a year since she lost Sora and Riku.

After school, Kairi took a boat and went to the island where everyone use to play. She climbed up the ladder to the small peninsula-like rock where Sora and Riku used to have their matches. There was a strange tree that stood there. It was always nice to sit on the tree. She could see the whole ocean and it made her want to travel it. Somewhere, out on the ocean, they had to be out there. She could feel it.

She could hear the water being disrupted as oars hit the water. It was her best friend Selphie. Her brunette friend always did her best to try and help her.

Selphie waved to her best friend. "Hey, Kairi!" she shouts. However, she is lost in her own thoughts once again. Selphie didn't understand it. Why would she make up two people? That was not the Kairi that she knew. She had been undergoing therapy to get over a traumatic experience.

When Tidus, Wakka and herself found Kairi a week after the big typhoon, she had been drenched and there was water in her lungs. Tidus performed CPR on her and she coughed up the water. She began spouting nonsense about some guys named Sora and Riku before fainting. From what she heard, she went to two couples, telling them that their sons were gone.

Selphie climbed the ladder to the rock-island and waved her hand in front of Kairi's face. With extreme languidness, Kairi turned her eyes to face Selphie. "What is it?" she asked, uninterested in what she had to say. After the incident and her friends were taken away from her, she lost interest in all aspects of life. The only thing that kept her alive was coming to the island and staring at the sky until midnight, hoping against hope that her friends would be returned to her.

Selphie did not like Kairi's new attitude. However, she was willing to endure because of her friend's near fatal encounter with death. So she decided to play along with her friend's fantasy. "What were the names of your friends again?" she asks.

At once, Kairi's eyes lit up. Selphie hadn't seen that look in a long time. "Their names are Sora and Riku." The brunette did not miss the emphasis on the word are, as if they exist somewhere else. "What did they look like?" she continues.

Kairi smiled and that was not missed by Selphie. She had forgotten that Kairi smiled. Only in earlier photos would one ever see a smile on her face. "Well, Sora had brunet hair like yours except that it was spiked in every direction. It was impossible to comb and whenever seaweed or a crab got stuck in his hair, it would take hours to get it out." She smiled at the memory. "I remember that his eyes were blue as the clear sky." Selphie sat down on the ground. "Unlike Sora, Riku had smooth platinum hair. He would wear it down because, he said that girls love the way his hair looked when it was down. I remember Riku's eyes we like the sea, blue-green. And both of their hair was smooth as silk." Kairi mentioned as an afterthought.

Selphie felt entranced by Kairi's story-telling. Somehow, it felt as if she was remembering something instead of making something up. "Sora was kind-hearted. Whenever there was something to be done, he would be the first one to do it. He was kind of goofy and funny, which I always thought was cute. On the flip side, Riku was mature. He was the oldest of the three of us and he always made sure that we would stick to the task at hand. Not much affected him negatively and he could always make me smile. Both of them were strong and protected me from bullies and strangers. Whenever I went shopping, the two of them always insisted to come with me to protect me from those with bad intents. While Sora was skinny and thin, Riku was more muscular and buff. I still miss them. It was right here that I lost them so I wait patiently for them to come back. It is one of those things that I can't explain." She sighed as her pain returned two-fold.

Selphie looked at her friend. It sounded very much like she was in love with not one, but two guys. "Hey, Kairi, can I ask you a question?" Selphie asked. "Who do you like more, Sora or Riku?"

At that question, Kairi stopped everything, including her breathing. That was not a question that she was expecting.

"Umm…" Try as she might, she could not give an answer to her friend. The choice was like comparing cake and ice cream to a child. The child would ask her mother for both if possible. And she realized it; she loved both Sora and Riku. Each had their own personal traits that made them attractive. In fact, she realized why Selphie would think that. She was describing them as someone deeply and madly in love would. There was no easy answer to that. Whenever she was close to a decision of one of the boys, a trait or characteristic came to her mind that vouched for the other boy.

"I… don't… know…" she confessed. Kairi never realized that she was in love either one, and now, she found out that she was in love with both. "How could this have happened?" she whispered, not to Selphie but to herself.

She started to laugh; but it was so bitter. Selphie tried her hardest to comfort her. "Why are you crying, Kairi?" she asked. A romantic at heart, Selphie would have been the first one to congratulate Kairi on snagging not one but two guys. (Sometimes that romanticism would border on lustfulness. And maybe, if they were real, she would have asked to be set up with one of them.) But somehow, she realized that her friend was going through some terrible internal battle. The brunette did not like that and, because she caused it, she felt guilty.

"I'll leave you alone now." Selphie spoke and left the rock-island, down the ladder and went home.

Kairi stood there until the sun began to sink into the sea and the moon rose to take its place. She sighed. Part of her realized that it was irrational to wait for people that were probably not coming.

As she was about to leave the rock-island, a brilliant flash of light appeared. She turned around. The light was not Sora's but instantly, she felt at peace and that was something that she hand not felt in a long time.

In that light were six figures: Aurora, Snow White, Cinderella, Alice, Jasmine, and Belle. Each of them were in princess's garbs. When she looked down at her body, she realized that she was wearing a red flowing glow. This was the first time that she had seen them outside of Hollow Bastion.

"What are you guys doing here?" She asked

Princess Aurora, with her fair blonde hair and lilac dress stepped forward. "Princess Kairi, we bring you message of a threat to your life."

"My life?" she asked.

Princess Belle, with her brunette hair tied in a bun and wearing a golden flowing dress, moved forward to answer her. "Princess Kairi, there is a reason that no one remembers the Heroes of the Light and Dark."

"Heroes of the Light and Dark? Do you mean Sora and Riku?"

Princess Snow White, with her dark hair tied tightly and wearing a blue and white dress, answered her. "They will be returning soon and so will the evil that will try to unseal Kingdom Hearts."

"Kingdom Hearts?" Now Kairi is perplexed. What does this Kingdom Hearts have to do with Sora and Riku and the fact that no one remembers either of them?"

Princess Jasmine, with her dark hair tied in a ponytail and wearing Agrabah's princess garbs, held her hand to silence Kairi. "That is not important right now. What is important is that, when the Heroes of Light and Dark return, bring them back here at the light of the full moon."

"But you never answered my question. Why doesn't anyone remember Sora and Riku?"

Princess Cinderella, with her blonde hair also tied in a bun and wearing a pale blue dress, shook her head. "We don't know. But what we do know is that you, as are we, are a threat to this evil."

"What is it about me that is threatening to this evil?" She asked, now frightened at the prospect that someone is after her life.

Princess Alice, with her hair fanning out and her pink dress glimmering, put her hand on Kairi's shoulder. Kairi looked at her with utmost fear and saw a smile staring back at her. "Do not worry. The Heroes of Light and Dark will protect you."

The six princesses made a circle. "Our power is exhaust but please come to us individually. We will be able to help you then." Princess Aurora told her. The women began to chant. "Remember this well!"

**Ones born of the heart**

**and darkness, devoid of hearts,**

**ravage all worlds and**

**bring desolation.**

**Seize all hearts and**

**consummate the great heart.**

**All hearts to be one,**

**one heart to encompass all.**

**Realize the destiny:**

**the realm of Kingdom Hearts.**

**The great darkness sealed**

**within the great heart.**

**Progeny of darkness, come**

**back to the eternal darkness.**

**For the heart of light**

**shall unseal the path,**

**Seven hearts, one keyhole,**

**one key to the door.**

**The door of darkness,**

**tied by two keys.**

**The door of darkness to**

**seal the light.**

**None shall pass the shadows,**

**returning to the darkness.**

**Ones born of the heart**

**and darkness, hunger**

**for every heart until**

**the dark door opens.**

With that, the Princesses left Kairi.

Once again, Kairi was left alone. But there were two feelings that went through her heart at that time. One was happiness. The happiness she felt when Sora and Riku were around her. The other one was fear. When they did arrive, something was going to happen that might irrevocably change them forever.

She stared at the moon. "What is going to happen?"

* * *

This is the first chapter of this fic and I hope that you will bear with me as I tell it. Please be patient and review. It makes me want to type more.


	2. Sora

Chapter 2: Sora

Author's Note: I don't particularly like this song. However, it does fit him.

* * *

_The Hero of Light, his trials are not over. The rest that he sorely wants must wait until he discovers himself._

Space is infinite.

At least, it is infinite for someone who has been trying to find his way home for a long time.

Sora has been labeled everything ever since he left: hero, Keyblade Master, savior…. It wasn't as if he didn't mind the names, but the spiky brunet didn't believe that he was worthy of such praise.

He wasn't able to save Riku from his fate. Nor was he able to take Kairi with him.

Sighing, the Keyblade Master leaned back in the captain's chair. This journey took a year out of his life and what did he have to show for it?

Besides him, Donald and Goofy were staring at him. The two citizens of Disney Palace took conference among themselves at another corner of the Gummiship.

"Hey-a, Donald" the Captain of the Royal Guard asked his friend, the Count Wizard. "What do you think is wrong with Sora?"

Donald balled his hands into fists and animatedly moved them as he talked. "Don't be a dummy! Don't you remember that his friend was trapped in Kingdom Hearts with the Heartless!" He quacked incessantly as Goofy did his best to remember. "Honestly, it was just two months ago."

Goofy had a forlorn look on his face. "I know! It's just that we didn't finish what we set out to do." Donald stopped ranting and looked at his friend. "We didn't bring the King back. Minnie is going to be sad."

Donald didn't look at it that way and his eyes were cast downwards. "Yeah! But understand this, Goofy! Let's not remind Sora about what happened to his friends."

The two returned to their seats to find that Sora was watching Chip and Dale, the two Chipmunk engineers, working on the electrical units.

Donald turned to his friend, the Keyblade Master. "Sora," he began. The blue-eyed boy looked at his friend with a bored expression. It unnerved Donald. Since when had he looked at him with such dead eyes?

"Are we going to go to another place where they will sing my praises for defeating Ansem?" He asked. After receiving so much praise from all of the worlds that he visited, it was no surprise that he was tired of it.

Ironically, when he was back at Destiny Island, he would pretend to be a knight to rescue fair damsels. His partner, of course would be Riku. The two of them would cut their ways through 'forests', 'glens' and 'mountains', slaying 'dragons' and the 'evil' knights that stood in their way, particularly Tidus, Vincent, Zidane, Locke, Bartz, Rikku, and Paine. Finally, they would make it to the fair damsel, Kairi, who would be guarded by a powerful 'witch', who would be played by Lulu. Finally, with 'evil' vanquished, the three of them would ride off into the sunset on stick horses.

He snorted lightly at the memory. This was not something he expected to be doing with his life. He shook his head. "What was it that you wanted, Donald?" he asked.

"We are going to have an audience with the Queen in a few hours, so please watch your manners." The Count Wizard told him. Sora nodded and immediately lost himself in his thoughts.

There was an incoming message on the vidscreen. Chip scurried over to it and the screen beeped on. There was a feed of Cid Highwind on the screen. At that moment, Jiminy Cricket jumped on Sora's shoulder to see what the gruff man had to say at the moment.

"Sora, meet me in Disney Castle's Library. There is something of great importance that needs to be discussed." With that, the screen went blank and Sora perked up. It wasn't often that Cid was this excitable. However, when he was, there was something seriously wrong.

"Chip, Dale," said Sora while he was jumping out of his seat. "Set a course for Disney Castle and have us there NOW."

"Aye-aye!" the chipmunks squeaked as they hit buttons and commands. The engine could be heard roaring to life. Sora was pushed back into his chair as the Gummiship moved at speeds comparable to when the trio went from world to world locking the worlds.

* * *

In no less than 10 minutes, the Gummiship landed on the grounds of Disney Town. The trio got out of the ship. They were greeted by a prim and proper English woman with an umbrella. She bowed low at the sight of Sora, Donald and Goofy. "My name is Mary Poppins. I shall escort Your Grace, Your Excellency, and the Keyblade Master to Disney Castle in order to have an audience with the Queen."

Sora watched as Mary Poppins tapped the ground with the tip of her umbrella. The ground shook beneath him and they levitated on a thin slice of metal. This 'vehicle' flew in the direction of Disney Castle. The Keyblade Master turned to Donald and Goofy.

"Who was she talking to when she said Your Grace and Your Excellency?" he asked.

Donald looked at him, oddly. "Don't you know?" Sora shook his head. The Count Wizard sighed, though it did sound like a washing machine on the fritz. "Your Grace refers to this lunkhead" he said, pointing to Goofy "because the King made him a Duke as well as the Captain of the Royal Guard." Said captain looked at his friend.

"That wasn't very nice, Donald." He commented. The Captain smiled as he looked towards the castle.

"And Your Excellency refers to me, a Count." With the explanations finished, Donald and Goofy told Sora what was expected of him when dealing with the Queen.

The thin slice of metal landed at the front gate. Mary Poppins bowed low and took her leave. Sora, Goofy and Donald made their way into the castle.

The blue-eyed boy was dazzled by the sights of animate brooms and mops cleaning the castle without someone to utilize them. There were statues of the King in stone. Creatures of all kinds moved about the castle. Finally, the trio ran into a familiar dog.

"Pluto!" Goofy exclaimed as he rubbed the dog's head with his large hands. "A-hyuck, how have you been, boy?" Pluto barked his response. It was somewhat happy, yet expectant of someone. "Sorry boy, but the King isn't with us." Pluto looked at Goofy with a sad expression; well, as sad as an expression a dog can give.

Pluto sulked away from the trio. Sora, Donald and Goofy found themselves in front of large, grandiose doors. These doors opened themselves and the trio walked inside the throne room. Inside was Queen Minnie sitting on one of the thrones and Countess Daisy standing by her side. There is an audience of many individuals standing in a row on either side of a red carpet.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy bowed low before the Queen of Disney Castle. "Rise!" Minnie commanded. The trio rose and stood upright. The Queen, followed by Countess Daisy, amble royally towards the three heroes. Queen Minnie bowed her head in front of the heroes. There was a gasp let out from the people inside the courtroom, then the people knelt in front of the heroes. Countess Daisy also had her head bowed like her Queen and best friend.

"Please kneel, Sora!" she asked in a soft voice. Sora could not deny her so he kneeled in front of the Queen of Disney Castle. Minnie drew her hand forward and a sword materialized in her hand. "This is the Sword Excalibur, once wielded by the greatest of all knights." She touched him on each shoulder with the sword. "With this sword, Disney Castle knights those worthy of the title, Hero. So, Sora of Destiny Islands, I dub thee, Sora, Hero of Light."

There was a resounding cheer as Sora, awed by the reaction and the praised that he received by the Queen and her people, blushed. In a similar fashion, Donald and Goofy were also given similar titles. With its task completed, Excalibur disappeared and the trio stood up. "Unfortunately, there is a problem that needs to be taken care of," Minnie told the Hero of Light. "Please follow me!"

* * *

Queen Minnie led the trio and Countess Daisy behind the thrones and into a room. Inside the room were some of the friends Sora made during his travels: Cid, Squall Leonheart also known as Leon, Yuffie Kisaragi the Ninja, Aerith Gainsborough, and Cloud Strife. They were about to bow as the Queen entered when she held up her hand. "Please do not worry about the formalities." She asked and the group stopped in mid-bow.

Sora glanced at the room. This must serve as a war room. There are star maps and maps of the country. There is also a huge roundtable. He took his seat and the others did the same.

Queen Minnie nodded in Leon's direction and he took it as his cue to begin. "There is something going on in Destiny Island." Leon told the group. At the mention of his home planet, Sora perked up. "There is a huge accumulation of Light and Dark energy on Destiny Island. Not only that, it is happening also on Agrabah, Wonderland, Hollow Bastion, Halloween Town, Neverland, and Traverse Town. We don't know what is happening there."

Cid stood up next and Leon sat. "Plus those damn Heartless are back in force. We were pushed back by the overwhelming numbers. Hollow Bastion was overrun by the buggers. We barely escaped with our skins."

Sora grimaced. _So it is starting again_. "Why do you need me?" he asked.

Aerith stood next and Cid sat down. "We intercepted a conversation with one of the people controlling the Heartless. He wore a dark leather jacket and a hood covered his face." She pulled out a tape recorder and pressed place. The voice was distorted and garbled.

_Have you found the Princess? (pause) Well, you better find her. We didn't bring the lot of you back for nothing. We need all seven Princesses to unseal the way into Kingdom Hearts. Also, be on the lookout for the Heroes of Light and Dark. They are necessary to opening the Final Door._

The tape ended at that. Sora looked pale. _Heroes of Light and Dark! Do they mean Riku and me?_ "We believe that the Princesses refer to the Princesses that Maleficent captured a month ago and the Heroes of Light and Dark refer to Sora and Riku respectively." Queen Minnie nodded in Aerith's direction and she sat down.

"What are you suggesting that we do?" Queen Minnie asked. Although she tried to mask it, it was evident that worry crept into her voice. Goofy stood up.

"Your Majesty, send us to Sora's home so that we can protect one of the Princesses." There weren't many times that Goofy was this resolute bar two exceptions, when the King was involved or when his friends were involved. This was one of those times.

Leon looked at the Captain of the Royal Guard. "That's not a bad idea. Except we need to retrieve the Princess and bring her here. In fact, we need to protect all of the Princesses."

Cloud, after allowing everyone to speak, stood up. A terrible silence fell over the people at the table. "Whomever is controlling the Heartless will believe that we will separate to retrieve more Princesses. In fact, that is what they are expecting. If we can rescue one of the Princesses, then they will fail because their plan can only succeed with all of the Princesses."

Queen Minnie looked at Cloud. "And how do you know this?" she asked. "I was employed by Hades to kill Hercules. In his employment, a witch by the name of Maleficent came to him. They were in cahoots to kill Sora because he wielded the Keyblade. She mentioned that the Heartless can not harm the Princesses because of the nature of their hearts render them immune to their assaults. It would take a powerful source of Light and a more powerful Darkness, a rational Darkness, to nullify that immunity."

Countess Daisy looked at the mercenary. "So what you are saying is that if we send warriors to retrieve the Princess there is a chance that we may fail to rescue them?"

"I'm not saying that it is not impossible but that is something that you should be aware of." Cloud answered. "Maleficent and her gang were able to capture Aurora, Cinderella and Snow White by allowing Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith to have contact with them. The rest of the Princesses: Alice, Jasmine, and Belle had their immunity nullified when they came into contact with Sora."

Queen Minnie had closed her eyes as if in deep thought. She opened them and looked at Sora. "Sora, what is your opinion on this?"

Sora did not expect to be called on. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty." His blue eyes looked dejected. He just wanted to go home, or at least search for Riku. "I don't have a good enough opinion to share with the group."

Queen Minnie looked at him skeptically. "No, I'm sorry!" she told him. The people at the table were shocked. "I know that you've been through a lot and all you want to do is be reunited with your friends." Sora looked at her with awe. _How did she know that?_

"And I will not force you to do anything that you don't want to do. But I am asking you" she stood up from the chair and walked in Sora's direction. When she was standing by his side, she knelt next to him. "Nay, I am begging you. Please save all of the worlds once again."

Sora looked around at the people he called his friends. Even though he was a bit tired from the flight and the adoration, there was no way that he would ever let anyone down. "I will do it." He beamed a smile at everyone.

Queen Minnie bowed her head. "Thank you, Sora!" With that, she took her seat. When she did, two puffs of smoke appeared. "You called for us, Your Majesty?" the smokes said.

On the Queen's left side was the wizard Merlin and on her right was the Fairy Godmother. "Yes! Please let me explain first." All eyes were on the Queen.

"I received a message from the King a few minutes before Cid and his crew came to me about the growing influx of Light and Darkness." Donald and Goofy shot up with the news. "Your Majesty received a message from the King." They shouted in unison.

Minnie held up a hand to calm them. "Yes!" Both the Count Wizard and the Captain of the Royal Guard sat down. "The King told me that he and another individual need a way to escape Kingdom Hearts."

Sora looked at the Queen. "There is a way that we can save both Kairi and rescue the King. There is a door on Destiny Islands that opens to Kingdom Hearts. Send King Mickey there." Minnie smiled. "That's a great idea." She turned to Merlin and the Fairy Godmother.

"Please send a message to the King. Tell him to find a way towards Destiny Islands."

Merlin and the Fairy Godmother went to work on reaching the King.

Sora looked at the Queen curiously. "Your Majesty, did the King say with whom he was traveling?" With that question, Minnie smiled. "He said that it was a boy named Riku."

To say that Sora was shocked would be an understatement. His jaw dropped so fast, you would have thought there were weights in his mouth. But that was replaced with a huge smile. Minnie continued with her speech, relieved that the news made Sora smile.

"Anyways, Sora, you are going to have to open the door with your Keyblade. That will allow the two of them to safely cross into the Present World." The Keyblade Master nodded.

Cid stood up and shouted. "Well, what are we waiting for? Follow me to my new and improved airship." Cid led the charge with everyone else following behind him. Queen Minnie and Countess Daisy stayed behind.

"Are our peaceful days about to end, Daisy?" The Queen's eyes were downcast. "We have to believe in them, Minnie." Her friend responded.

* * *

The gruff engineer known as Cid led them outside to a magnificent airship.

He stopped in mid-step and Sora looked to see what was going on. "Why did you stop…." The question died on his lips as everyone gasped at the person standing in their way.

With her long flowing cape and her staff, Maleficent grinned darkly at the Keyblade Master. She looked ethereal, like a hologram and that's what she was. "Long time no see, Keyblade Master." She spat. "And there are the king's lackeys." She said to Donald and Goofy. Finally she looked at Cid and his group. "And finally, the homeless people." She cackled loudly.

Leon growled. It was because of her and Ansem that the four of them were homeless. He fingered the Gunblade at his waist. He did not notice Cloud next to him, brandishing his huge sword against the witch. She only laughed harder.

"Do you really think that you can me, me the mistress of all evil? No longer am I Maleficent, but Maleficent Nata." Raising her staff into the air, meteors from heaven came hurtling towards Disney Castle. Fortunately, they were shot into smithereens by the airship, which was done through a controller. That controller was in the hands of Cid. With a huge grin, Cid held the controller in the air.

"Sorry, witch. But this baby is the key to my latest invention, the Ragnarok."

Yuffie, seeing an opening, jumped in the air and dropped a flash charge. A bright light blinded Maleficent and Sora and company escaped on the Ragnarok.

After recovering from the charge, Maleficent scowled at the airship that dared to defy her. "Do you really believe that you will get away?" Before she could do something, Merlin and the Fairy Godmother appeared in her line of sight. They quickly cast a spell to banish Maleficent's astral form from Disney Castle. The dark witch, knowing that her projected form was not as powerful as her body, allowed the spellcasters to banish her but not without getting in a last word.

"I'll allow them to escape. They will fulfill the purpose that is assigned to them." With that, Maleficent disappear.

* * *

The mighty dreadnaught Ragnarok was in the air and Sora was amazed at the flying machine. Yuffie was bounding up and down, following the blue-eyed boy and asking if he liked it. Leon and Cloud walked ahead of Yuffie, a little annoyed at the bundle of energy. Aerith walked behind the two, calm and smiling. Donald and Goofy walked behind the Keyblade Master. Cid had already taken the helm and started to pilot the ship to Destiny Island.

"Just think," Yuffie went on, a huge grin plastered on her face. "You'll get to see your little girlfriend, Kairi." Sora blushed. "Hey, I like Riku, too." The blue-eyed boy shot back. He didn't realize what he said until he saw the smile vanish from the cheerful ninja's face. With that, he ran away from her, from everybody to another part of the ship.

Yuffie was about to go after him when a strong hand stopped her. It was the shaggy-haired Leon, grabbing her hand. "Let him go!" he said softly. There was power in the way that he spoke. "He needs to be alone for a while." He may have been only talking to Yuffie, but everyone knew that Sora wanted to be alone in his thoughts.

* * *

Sora ran to a cabin room and shut the door. _How could I have blurted that out like that_, he wondered.

It was his best kept secret that Sora liked both Riku and Kairi. Call him bisexual, but Sora didn't think of it that way. Sora was a very loving person and the only ones that made him feel special in the way that people make their lovers feel special were Kairi and Riku.

It wasn't until a week before the catastrophe when he learned of his true feelings. The three of them were lounging on the beach, staring at the night sky. Kairi was on his right side and Riku was on his left. It was the night that they had decided that the three of them would leave the island in search of the place where Kairi came from.

Unfortunately for the three friends, the cold tide came in and drenched them. Now their clothes were soaked and the ocean breeze, which would have been comfortable before the soaking, started to chill them. They didn't have the foresight to bring clothes and none of them wanted to leave the island, just to get clothes. So Riku, strangely enough, told them that in order to stay warm, the three of them needed to strip to their underclothes and huddle together to stay warm. He said that it would be good practice for when the three of them were out at sea and needed to stay warm.

Sora and Kairi blushed, although Kairi blushed more because, at least in Sora's mind, she would be near-naked in front of two boys. Sora, being body shy because he didn't have the physique like Riku or Tidus, was reluctant about getting to a state of near nakedness. But Riku had promised the two of them that they weren't going to have sex and that it was just to keep warm. And then he did it. He took of his shirt and pants, leaving him with just his boxers. Sora could only stare in awe at his wonderful physique: washboard abs, muscled biceps, and lean legs. However, Sora's attention was directed towards the silver-haired teen's green boxers, hoping to see what could lie under that. He looked at Kairi and she had the same look that he had.

Kairi had taken off her clothes next and stripped to her bra and panties. Once again, Sora was in awe of his friend's physique: lean legs, ample waist, smooth tummy, but it was her breasts that caught Sora's attention. Supple and just the right size for her body, they were a beacon for men's eyes. Fumbling with his shirt and pants, the blue-eyed boy finally undressed to his black boxers. Even with his gaze down, he could feel eyes on him. Strangely enough, he didn't feel uncomfortable.

With that, Riku motioned the other two to the blanket that they had planned to sleep on. They lied down, but the wind picked up and the three of them shivered. Riku suggested that the three of them share body warmth by staying very close. Sora looked at Riku strangely. Since when did he have such ideas?

The three had became a mass of limbs and created a Sora sandwich. After the initial awkwardness, Sora felt so comfortable. That is when he realized that he loved the two of them.

* * *

Coming back from his reminiscing, Sora opened his eyes and they quickly adjusted to the darkness. Being such a kind person, he didn't like to hurt anyone. But such a decision would hurt someone and would ultimately hurt him in the end. Sora would have rather not have these feelings in the first place but he did.

There was a knock at the door. Sora opened it and Donald and Goofy looked at the blue-eyed boy.

"Aa, Sora, we are entering Destiny Island airspace!" Goofy told him. Sora faked a smile and went to the bridge. Right now, saving Riku and Kairi was the first thing on his mind. He would protect the ones he loved.

Here is the second chapter. Now some of the plot is forming. The next chapter will deal with Riku and his feelings. So stay tuned.


	3. Riku

Chapter 3: Riku

This is my favorite theme song. It is amazing and I invite all to listen to it. It rocks.

* * *

_Dark passion breaks free of the bonds that afflict it to love again_

What is darkness really?

Could there be such darkness that even if you were submersed in it, your eyes could never adjust?

Whatever the answer, it would be better not to think on it.

That was Riku was thinking at the moment. He had been walking for such a long time his feet started to give way.

After he and Sora closed the door to Kingdom Hearts, Riku and King Mickey have been looking for a way out. This is not to say that their journey was a pleasant one. The Heartless decided that their hearts would be sufficient to take.

Unfortunately for those creatures, Riku and the King were not going to be taken easily. Having slain many Heartlesses, the creatures decided to let the hearts go.

Riku turned to the King. "Your Majesty, where is this road leading us?"

"I don't know, Riku." The King told him in all honesty. "But we need to keep following it. Staying here will do us no good."

Riku accepted that answer and the two of them continued on the road.

* * *

Does Time exist when there is no way to measure it? Normally people would use the sun and moon to ascertain whether it is day or night. In a pitch black world, Time could be moving fast or slow or not at all. Yeah, Riku could be a philosopher if the need required it.

If this was a new day, then he regretted ever opening the Door to Darkness in the first place. His thoughts came to his days on Destiny Islands.

Riku loved playing on the Island. His parents disapproved, saying that as a fifteen year old, he should let go of childish things and start to become an adult. But that was an impossibility to the silver-haired teen since all of his friends where still playing on the Island. His favorite activities included swordplay with Sora and swimming with Kairi.

His parents, when he turned fifteen, were very strict on whom he was allowed to have contacts with. And he noticed that he wasn't allowed to have Sora over more than Kairi. Kairi was a more suitable choice because of her beauty, according to his parents, and the fact that she was becoming a woman.

Not that they would say that outright, but more often than not, whenever Sora was coming over to play video games, his parents found him something to do, which meant that the spiky-haired boy couldn't come over. On the rare occasions that Sora was allowed to come over, they were closely monitored.

On the flipside, whenever Kairi was coming over to watch a TV show that the two of them liked (for some reason, Sora didn't join the bandwagon of reality TV shows), his parents mysteriously had dinner plans. Giving him surreptitious winks and grins, they left as soon as Kairi came through the door.

Riku was completely aware of his parents' plans and he did not like it. But the silver-haired teen recognized where his heart lied. His parents would be proud that he fell in love with Kairi. What man wouldn't? She was a very cute girl with an amicable personality and a really good figure.

But he loved Sora also. He had a boyish charm and a way to make him smile, whether it was intentional or not. Riku's parents were not open-minded people. The idea that a man and another man could love each other was absurd.

Because Riku couldn't decide who to choose, he chose to be selfish and have them both. Is it so wrong to be selfish in this? If anything, at least his parents would only half-hate him.

But, his plan was dependent on two things: making sure that he was not caught trying to have the both of them and making sure that he didn't force them too hard that Sora and Kairi would fall in love with each other and leave him behind.

That was the point of leaving the Island in search of the place where Kairi came from. It would force the three of them to be in a cramped space where anything could happen.

But Riku had to make sure that he could grab both of their attentions first. So enter the week before the catastrophe. The three of them would enjoy a night under the stars and have some fun. It was all calculated. He knew that high tide was coming and so he purposely set the campfire nearer to the shore. When high tide came hard, as it usually does at this time, the three friends were drenched to the bone.

Riku's plan seemed to work. Phase two was to get Sora and Kairi comfortable with the idea of being in a state of near-nakedness.

"Ack, we are completely soaked." Kairi spluttered out the salt-water from her mouth.

"Yeah Riku, what's with you?" Sora asked, pulling some seaweed from his hair. "You never forget about high-tide."

Riku shook his head in feigned ignorance. "Sorry! I had another argument with my parents."

It was true. This one really took the cake. He told his parents about the campout and that Sora and Kairi were coming. His father pulled him over to the side.

"Listen." His father began. "Your mother and I have come to the conclusion that you are spending too much time with Sora and not enough time with Kairi."

Riku snorted. "And how, dear father, did you come up with that assumption?"

"Don't you sass me boy." He commanded. "I am only looking out for your best interests. You are fifteen and fifteen year old boys do not spend their time playing with wooden swords. They are going out with girls. Why, when I was your age, I was at the mall, trying my hardest to get girls to notice me."

His father shook his head. "I don't get it. What's wrong with you? You have the looks and you have the body. You should be beating girls back with a stick. But that doesn't happen, does it? Do you know why? It's because you hang out with the childish fag, Sora."

Riku couldn't take it anymore. He punched his father in his face and the older man fell over. "How fucking dare you talk about Sora like that!" he shouted. "Sora is my best friend and I will not have anyone saying anything bad about him in my face. Likewise, Kairi is my best friend also and the same rules apply for her."

With that, he stormed out of the house.

"So you fought with your father again." Sora sighed, placing his hands behind his head. "I wish that you would tell us why you are always fighting with him."

"Yeah Riku, we're your friends." Kairi echoed, drawing lines in the sand with her foot. The silver-haired teen sighed.

"He doesn't approve of the activities that the three of us do." It wasn't a total lie. "He says that I should be doing teen things like going out on dates and hanging out at the mall and stuff. Why doesn't he let me be with my friends?"

Even before he finished, the two of them hugged Riku and it made him smile. Such loving friends. "We'll always be here when you need us." Kairi told him.

"Friends forever, Riku." Sora completed the redhead's thoughts.

A cold wind blew over the three of them and they shivered. Riku was expecting this and he mentally smirked. He looked over the other two and saw them with chattering teeth. "Guys, we need to get out of these wet clothes." Riku was surprised at how calmly his voice came out. Just thinking about seeing the two loves in his life strip to near nudity made his palms sweat and his groin flare in excitement.

Just as expected, their faces turned red with embarrassment. "A…a… but Riku?" Sora was a stuttering mess. But Kairi was no better. Her tongue was too tied to even think of a response.

Riku shook his head before speaking. "Listen, staying in wet clothes will get us sick and if you guys want to leave the Island, that's fine. But as for me, I am staying here." The final part came out a little bit rougher than he wanted. Instantly, he regretted saying that because now his friends stared at the ground, ashamed of themselves.

"I'm sorry for yelling. But I just thought that it would be necessary because the three of us would be at sea and need to be use to the idea of sharing each other's warmth."

Without allowing any other comments, he took off his shirt and pants, leaving only his boxers on. "See, nothing wrong. We aren't going to have sex." He crooned. _Although, I surely hope so_, he thought. He knew that he was doing something right when he felt two pairs of eyes on him.

"Riku's right." Kairi enunciated every word, an obvious testament to her nervousness. "We need to prepare for the day that we finally set sail. This will be some good practice." With shaking hands, she took over her own clothes, leaving only her bra and panties. That was a sight that made him drool. Not that Riku hadn't seen her in a two-piece before, it was just the sight of the bra which accentuated and pushed up her round assets and the panties which hid treasures that he wanted to taste.

Taking a discreet look at Sora, Riku noticed that he was flushed with embarrassment, but he also saw that cute innocent Sora was staring a bit too intently at the shapely body of their female friend.

After the initial embarrassment, Kairi smiled at Sora. "Sora, you need to get out of those clothes. You will catch a cold or something."

Sora was nervous and it took all of Riku's willpower not to go over to the boy and whisper that it was all right and he loved him. Looking at the way that Kairi was scrunching her face in worry told him that she was thinking something along the same lines as he.

With pronounced hesitation, Sora took of his shirt first. There was a dark stain on his cheeks as the article of clothing came off. It was just like him to blush in such a situation. With the same hesitancy, the pants came off and Sora's hands twitched, as if he was resisting the urge to cover himself.

Once again, he looked at the near-nakedness of his friend. Although he was not overtly muscular, there was some tautness in his flesh, and there was something trying to make itself known in his pants.

Riku covertly licked his lips and was pleased to see that Kairi was doing the same thing.

"Okay, now that we got that out of the way, let's pull out the blanket and head to sleep." Riku got the blanket and unfurled it on the soft sand. It reminded him of a certain video that he found very arousing.

"Um, Riku," The silver-haired teen looked up to see Sora blushing profusely. "That blanket isn't big enough for the three of us to be comfortable."

_Well what do you know_, Riku thought as he mentally grinned. "It was the biggest blanket that I could find." He told his friend.

"Then what are you suggesting…" Kairi was about to ask the question when she came to the dreaded conclusion. "Are you saying that the three of us are going to have to squeeze into the blanket?"

"Unless you want to sleep on the sand and have it on your body, yes." Came the hurried response. Riku's heart was beating faster than it ever had in his remembrance. "If you want, think of it as training for the trip we are taking."

Sora, to Riku's shock, agreed first. "I guess. I mean, come on, we are nearly adults. This shouldn't be such a big deal." _Yeah, except you made a big fuss when it came to taking off your clothes._

He promptly lied in the middle of the blanket. Riku frowned a bit. He wanted to be in the middle so that he would be between the two loves of his life. But, if Sora wanted it this way, so be it. So after, Riku and Kairi lied on either side of him, thus creating a Sora-sandwich.

Riku would treasure that day because the week after proved to be the most difficult in dealing with his father. It was the night of the catastrophe, though he didn't know what was going to happen.

"Riku," his father called him from the dining room. The silver-haired teen bounded down the stairs. Today was the day that he was finally leaving the Island in search of the place where Kairi grew up.

"Yeah, Dad?" There was nothing that was going to ruin his mood, not even his asshole of a father.

"I just heard an interesting rumor today and it concerns you and your friends." Riku noted the pent-up anger and the vein on his father's head. It was not a good sign, so he decided not to speak. "Last week, someone from the Island's Coast Guard spotted three kids in their underwear sleeping on the beach." His eyes narrowed dangerously. "Would you happen to know who those kids are?"

Riku knew that now, that special night he shared with the two loves of his life was discovered. "I told you that that childish fag would corrupt you and look what happened."

"Dad, it's not what you think. We were soaked and so the three of us took off our wet clothes and huddled for warmth." Riku tried in vain to argue with his dad but to no avail.

"If that were true, then why didn't you come back?" To that, Riku had no answer. "If you want to be friends with that childish fag, then do so. But never come back home." With rage in his heart, Riku left the house pissed.

In the dead of night, he went back to the place that always made sense. On the plateau where he and Sora dueled for Kairi's entertainment, he heard a voice.

"Poor little boy." The voice mocked him.

"Who's there?" he asked.

"I saw your predicament. I can help you. All you need to do is open the Door of Darkness." The Voice promised him.

"How can …" Riku was about to protest but was cut off.

"I know of your wish to have two lovers and the only thing that is preventing you is your bigoted father. But if you open this Door to Darkness, then all of your wishes will be fulfilled."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Ansem." That was the last thing that Riku remember before he lost consciousness.

* * *

And look what his lust brought him and his friends. He was disgusted with himself. If this was darkness, this was his home. So he had asked Sora to protect Kairi. If at least they fell in love with each other, some of the guilt of trying to have both of them would be washed clean.

And perhaps he couldn't love the two of them in reality. But at least in his dreams, Riku would have Sora and Kairi.

"What are you thinking of right now, Riku?" The sudden intrusion of King Mickey's voice made Riku shudder. When he looked at the royal mouse looking at him with doleful eyes, he lost it.

"Your Majesty," the King raised his hand to silence the silver-haired youth. "Please call me Mickey, Riku."

"Okay, Mickey." He felt himself smile for the first in a long time. "Is it wrong to love someone?"

"It is never wrong to love someone. It makes you stronger to have someone love you." Mickey smiled as he comforted his traveling buddy.

"Is it wrong to love someone of the same gender?" he asked.

"Love is love, regardless of to whom it is directed towards." Mickey was curious. Did Riku hold an attraction to the Keyblade Master?

"Is it wrong to love more than one person in a romantic way?" Once he asked the first question, all of the other questions came flooding through.

"You love both the Keyblade Master and the Princess, correct?" When Mickey saw Riku nod, it shocked him. It wasn't an I-can't-believe-this sort of shock but an I-never-would-have-guessed shock.

"Well, all I can tell you is that you shouldn't be ashamed of whom you love. You will be able to confess your love someday." Mickey smiled at the silver-haired teen.

"Thank you, Mickey."

* * *

If darkness is an everlasting road, when do you know when you have arrived to the point where you are suppose to be?

Riku and Mickey made their way to a pedestal holding a beautiful Keyblade. It was engraved with a sun rising from clouds, like the dawn. It was orange-red and it emanated power.

"So, the Hero of Dark has arrived." Loud taunting voices cackled.

"Hero of Dark, what are you talking about?" Riku demanded. It only served to make the Voices laugh louder. "You don't know?" They taunt. "Is this the best hero the dark can produce?"

Riku growled but kept his eyes forward.

"What is it?" The Voices boomed. "Are you afraid of what lies before you?"

Riku shuddered. It wasn't that he was afraid. But since when does someone hear Voices out of nowhere and not be thought as unstable?

"This Keyblade isn't for the faint of heart, kid. It's called Way to the Dawn. When the Hero of Dark takes this in his hands, the path to the Present world shall open. There, he will stop the Nothingness from destroying the balance between Light and Dark by joining forces with the Hero of Light."

_Hero of Light, do they mean Sora?_

"Is the Hero of Light the Keyblade Master?" Riku asked.

"Hey, it seems the Hero of Dark has a brain?" the Voices taunted. "But I bet he's afraid to take what is rightfully his."

The taunting had gone on far enough. "I am not afraid." Riku took the Keyblade and, at once, a ripple in the, I guess you would call it a sky, opened.

Two figures in blue could be seen. "Your Majesty." They bowed.

"Hi guys." Mickey waved at them. "I need you to do me a favor. You two need to tell Minnie to tell Sora to open the Door on Destiny Islands. It will allow Riku and me to escape Kingdom Hearts. I am afraid that something is about to happen."

"Yes, Your Majesty. We will contact you when it's complete." The image of Merlin and the Fairy Godmother rippled away.

Riku turned to the King. "Now what do we do?"

"We wait for the Door to open and then we will be reunited with your friends." With that, Mickey sat down on the ground and happily hummed a tune.

Riku, after a while, sat down too. His thoughts were on the friends that he left behind. "Sora, Kairi, would you guys forgive me?" he asked himself.

* * *

Well, that's the end of the third chapter. I believe that I have completely corrupted Disney's mascot. Bad me. Oh well. Please review and tell me what you think.


	4. Organization XIII

Chapter 4: Organization XIII (Juusan Kikan)

Author's Note: I will refer to them as Juusan Kikan instead of Organization XII, the reason being because the English version is much too wordy for my tastes. It means the same thing anyways. And I hope to get all of the characters in character. So if they are not, please tell me in a review. And as for the song, it's alright. I like it.

* * *

_They are an organization, living in shadow. The material world shuns them for their incompleteness. What schemes do they hatch?_

Axel threw one of his chakrams in the air while lounging around in his room. He was bored, too bored to even get up. There hasn't been any excitement in over a month now. But what could he do? His orders were to stand down and he wouldn't go against the one that promised him a heart.

A blond guy in a long black trench coat waved at him to get his attention. The redhead languidly turns his head. "What is it, Demyx?" he asked. "You are preventing me from doing my nothing."

"The Superior is calling a meeting." He told him. Axel smirked. At least he won't be bored.

The two Nobodies made their way to the round table. Demyx sat in the seat with IX carved in it and Axel in the one with VIII. Both of them turn their attention to the seat with I carved into it. That was the Superior, Xemnas.

"Now is the time that Juusan Kikan will finally obtain what we have been waiting for." Xemnas began in an exaggerated fashion, using gestures to grab everyone's attention. "We have become Nobodies, devoid of hearts. So why should everyone else have one? We will create a new world where everyone is like us."

Axel looked around the room to see what everyone was feeling at the time.

The one sitting in the II seat looked serenely at the Superior. A go with the flow guy, Xigbar waited to do whatever the Superior said. Plus, it's fun.

Xaldin, who sat in the III seat, waited for the Superior to speak. He kept his thoughts to himself because they would do him no good here.

The IV seat, Vexen, showed nothing to what he was thinking also. Stoic by nature, he waited for the Superior to finish so that he could get back to his experiments. Unless he was called upon, he wouldn't say anything.

Lexaeus, the V seat, slouched a bit in his chair. This was keeping him from his training and unless the Superior had a task for him to do, that's where he would spend the rest of the day.

Zexion, who sat in the VI, listened intently. There was always use for his talents of manipulation. Plus there is a job he needs to get back to right after this.

Saïx, the VII seat, looked like he was paying attention, but he was always a hard read. He showed nothing of what he was thinking and could look like a mindless Dusk. So when it came to him, it was difficult to tell what, if anything, came to his mind.

Demyx was asleep. His head was down and drool came from his mouth. There was no mistaking the signs. But really, he was a great fighter. Otherwise he wouldn't have been chosen. All one had to deal with was his short-attention span.

The X seat, Luxord shuffled his cards while listening to what the Superior was saying. Perhaps his luck would be put to the test today.

One of the newer members of Juusan Kikan, the XI seat, Marluxia, looked at the Superior. But, to Axel, it seemed that whatever the Superior said wasn't penetrating his thick skull. Oh how he would like to kill that cocky bastard! Not that Axel himself wasn't, it was the principle of the thing.

XII seat Larxene twiddled with one of her throwing knives between her fingers. It didn't matter what the Superior said. As long as she got to maim people, whatever task befell her would be fine with her.

Finally, XIII seat Roxas fidgeted in his seat. Perhaps what the Superior was saying didn't sit well with him. It looks like he was going to have to have a talk with him after the meeting.

"It is now time." Xemnas told them. "Allow me to show you the conduit for our plans."

A girl in a white dress is being pulled by a Dusk Nobody. Roxas gasped softly while Axel hardened his glance. "Meet Namine." The Superior announced. "She is a very special Nobody as she can manipulate memories."

Namine had a look of lifelessness. Her eyes were dull. She looked at everyone in disregard. "With her, she will open the door to Kingdom Hearts." Xemnas continued.

"And how will she do that, Superior?" Marluxia asked.

Xemnas grinned. "I'm glad you mentioned it." He made a motion with his head and Zexion came forward. Placing his hands on Namine, the messy silver haired Nobody began to speak.

"On the Island of the Keyblade Master, we have begun to destroy all memory of that brat and Ansem's Pet. She has been instrumental to the deconstruction and recreation of these memories. And so, bound by these chains of memories, not even their parents remember who they are."

Vexen, the scientist, raised his hand. "And what about the Princess of Heart?" he ventured. "Does she retain all of her memory?"

Zexion frowned. "Unfortunately, due to the nature of her power, she cannot be affected in the same way that the others are. However, because she is the only one that retained her memories, all of the others believe that she is mentally unstable."

His piece done, he sat back down in his seat. Vexen was curious now. "And how does that help us get to Kingdom Hearts?"

Zexion smirked. "When the door is opened, Namine will flood all of Islanders memories back at once. The flow will overload their minds and kill them. The resulting overflow will also cause those that are normally unaffected by Namine's abilities to keel over in pain. That will be our opening."

"Now is the time that we strike back against all of those with hearts." Xemnas continued. "We have reports from one of our subordinates that the Keyblade Master is heading back to his home planet according to the false information that we supplied. When he opens the door to Kingdom Hearts, we will have the opening we need to finally get our revenge against those who mock us with their completeness."

All of Juusan Kikan leaned on the promise that Xemnas just gave to them. Finally, they will be complete and all others will be like they are now.

"Finally, I have a concern that was brought to my attention by Saïx." Axel would have laughed if he wasn't thinking about Roxas at the moment. The idea that Saïx had an original thought in his head was humorous, even more so that he acting on it.

Saïx stood up and looked at everyone. "There was a suspicious character seen around this Castle Oblivion." He began. All of them looked surprised except for Axel who was nonplussed and Roxas who was looking at Namine. "He was wearing our robes but I know for certain that he is not one of ours."

Xaldin looked at the Superior. "Perhaps we should send one of the members after him."

"That is a good idea." The Superior replies. "Prepare yourselves! You will have your orders in a few minutes." With that, the meeting was over and the members went back into their rooms.

* * *

The Superior came to Axel's room first. Axel stood outside of his room as the Superior addressed him. "Axel, you, Roxas and Demyx will stand guard at the castle to repel any intruders. Tell them both of their duties."

Axel nodded and was off.

Xemnas came to Larxene's room next. "You will go with Xaldin, Luxord, and Zexion and make your way to Destiny Island. There you will keep the door open long enough to set this." He gives her a box. "Make sure that you set this at the entrance. Otherwise, all of our efforts will be useless."

"And if anyone should get in my way?" She smirked, knowing what came next.

"Eliminate them without discrimination." Xemnas responded. It was very easy to keep her in line. All one really needed to do was to promise her that she would be able to revel in sadism and she was happy. "However, do not kill the Princess of Hearts on the Island. Bring her to me."

"And what about the Keyblade brat and Ansem's Pet." There is a feral glint in her eyes.

"Do what you will." With that, he left her.

The Superior came to Vexen's laboratory next. There were many slab tables where dead bodies were laid. One of them was a certain pirate.

"What are you doing, Vexen?" Xemnas asked.

"I am creating diversions." Was the cool response from the scientist. "Just in case whomever you sent out to open the way to Kingdom Hearts should fail, these cannon fodders will provide enough of a distraction for the Keyblade Master to formulate a new plan."

He walked to a table containing Bunsen Burners, beakers, and glasses. Mixing three different liquids together, he took the solution and poured it onto the specimen. Within seconds, the specimen became animated.

"Where am I?" it asked.

"I have a favor to ask of you, Captain Hook." Vexen called out to the pirate. Then turning to Xemnas he said, "It never hurts to plan for all contingencies."

Xemnas nodded and left him to his work.

Coming to the weight room next, the Superior saw Lexaeus pumping iron. "I have a task for you, Lexaeus."

The giant put down his weights and looked at the Superior. "What is it?"

"You and Saïx are going to look for the intruder." He tells him. "I have an idea who he is and if I am correct, I do not want to take any chances with him. He is still a formidable adversary."

Lexaeus nodded and went to find his tomahawk.

As Xemnas was walking to give orders to Marluxia, Demyx bumped into him. "Hey Sex Man," he waved.

Xemnas growled in annoyance. "It's Xemnas or just call me the Superior."

"Nah, Sex Man is cooler." The blond grinned cheekily. "It makes you sound like a super villain." With that, he summoned out his sitar and strummed it a bit.

_Sex Man, you're a Sex Man_

_Sex Man, you're a Sex Man_

"Demyx, did you get my orders from Axel?" Xemnas's dropped fist was shaking furiously.

"Nope!" he responded as he stopped playing his sitar. "What is it? I hope it's something easy."

"The three of you will be in charge of guarding the castle." After calming down a bit, he looked at the musician with dead eyes. If it wasn't for his mastery of the water element or the fact that he was an adept warrior, the white haired Nobody would have killed him the first time he called him that. "Is that easy enough for you?"

"Of course!" the IX seat told him with a saucy wink. "That means I can stay here and lounge around."

Before the Superior could grind his teeth, Demyx disappeared and he continued on his way to Marluxia's garden.

The spiky-haired Nobody was pruning one of the rose bushes when he sensed the Superior was behind him. "What are my orders?" Marluxia asked.

"You will go with Xigbar to retrieve one of the Princesses of Heart." The Superior answered. "Do not let anyone get in your way."

With that, Marluxia left.

Heading to his own room, Xemnas smirked. Everything is heading in his direction and nothing will stop him.

Axel sought out Roxas after the meeting but because of the Superior's orders, the redhead decided to find Demyx and get his task out of the way. Coming to the musician's room, the fiery Nobody knocked on the door. "Demyx!" he shouted. Inside he could hear some singing.

_Nobody knows the troubles I've seen_

_Nobody knows my sorrow_

_Nobody knows the troubles I've seen_

Axel barged in the room to see Demyx sitting in the Lotus position, strumming his sitar. As the blond was singing, water floated in the air and took shape. If Axel wasn't in a hurry to get to Roxas, he would have admired Demyx's ability to manipulate water. Axel cupped his hand and summoned fire to make the water evaporate.

Demyx opened his eyes and looked at Axel crossly. "Damn, you're a buzz-kill." The musician told his associate.

"We got orders from the Superior." Axel grinned, daring him to do something.

"I got them so please let me concentrate on doing my nothing." Demyx retorted.

Laughing, the redhead left the blond to find Roxas.

It was to no surprise to Axel that Roxas would be close to Namine. Making his way to the lower levels of the castle, the redhead ran to make sure that Roxas did not compromise himself.

Sure enough, in a windowless room, Axel found Roxas talking to Namine. Taking his time, he allowed for his presence to be known to the two of them.

"Axel!" Roxas lowered his eyes. "What are our orders?"

"We are to guard Namine and the castle." Axel's voice was surprising hollow, devoid of his usual steadfastness. "May I have a word with you in private?"

Roxas nodded and the two of them left the girl in the white dress and her room. Standing just outside, Axel shook his friend fiercely. "Listen, you are going to have to endure for a bit longer." The redhead told him. "He is promising us a heart. Do you know how wonderful a heart is?"

Roxas could not meet the gaze of his comrade. "But look at what it will cost us?" the blond refuted. "You do know the cost of our actions? Have you weighed the cost?"

"Listen to yourself, Roxas." Axel spat. "Where is the sure-of-himself Roxas that is my friend?" He glared at the shorter Nobody. "Do you trust that he will make good on his promise?"

To this, the blond looked at his friend with steely eyes. "And what about Namine?" he asked. "What will happen to her when the Superior has no more use for her?"

Axel's gaze softened. "I don't have an answer to that. But for the meantime, let's follow his orders and we will get to that bridge when we get there."

Roxas nodded hesitantly. Axel ruffled the boy's hair and smiled. "That's a good boy." The blond responded by laughing and shoving the offending hand off of his hair. "Hey! Do you know how long it took me to get it the way that it is now?"

All is quiet within Castle Oblivion. A lone figure in a black trench coat stood on a tree just without of the Castle Grounds. The figure's face is covered with a hood. White teeth could be seen from the blackness created by the hood.

* * *

That is Chapter 4. Chapter 5 will deal with Sora, Riku, and Kairi reuniting. So please join me for the next chapter of Dearly Beloved.


	5. Friends in My Heart

Chapter 5: Friends in My Heart

* * *

_And so I will wait here, to see you two again. I believe that with all my heart._

Kairi woke from her sleep a few minutes before her alarm was going to ring. Her heart was beating strongly. Something was going to happen today. She could feel it.

Today is a Saturday. School is out and the children are free. On every Saturday, Tidus, Wakka, Selphie, and Kairi would head out to the island where the children would play. Their group had grown larger since the disappearance of Sora and Riku. It now included some of their high school friends: Yuna, Rikku, Paine, Lulu, and Bartz. They would play some games, fight with each other, and just have fun like normal teenagers would. Normally Kairi would just sit on the weird-shaped tree, contemplating whether or not Sora and Riku would come back.

But today, the redhead felt a burst of energy. In her heart, she knew that today was going to be the day when Sora and Riku would return. A genuine smile reached her face. Today was going to be a good day.

* * *

The dreadnaught Ragnarok wasn't as fast as the gummiship, but it could withstand the Heartless's ships quite easily.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy went to the bridge where Cid and the others were preparing to enter Destiny Islands' airspace.

"I have to cloak the ship." Cid told them. "It would be troublesome to be spotted in the sky and then having to answer questions as to why we are in a ship."

Sora nodded dumbly at the explanation of the ship's captain. It wasn't as if he was asking that particular question. Nor did he really care whether or not the cloaking device was on. He just wanted on the island. He wanted to see Kairi and Riku.

The dreadnaught landed in the water near the main island. The thrusters lightly disturbed the water. Sora was home.

Riku and King Mickey made their way to the Nexus, a place within Kingdom Hearts that connects all worlds to each other. This would be the place where the two would be able to leave this place and return to the world of light.

"Which path leads to Destiny Islands?" Mickey mulled. There were so many paths. If they chose the wrong one, then, when Sora opened the door, they wouldn't be able to escape this place.

Riku closed his eyes. For some reason, he felt his heart go hot. His heart beat erratically. It was as if his heart was resonating with something. "Sora, Kairi, where are you guys?"

His Keyblade came to his hand almost immediately. It pointed to a path northwest of their direction. "Thank you."

With that, Riku and Mickey ran in that direction, to the place where his secret loves were waiting for him.

* * *

Larxene, Xaldin, and Luxord arrived on Destiny Islands through one of the gates of darkness. Zexion was already waiting for them, having left after the meeting. In the savage nymph's hands was a box which she was to put at the entrance of Kingdom Hearts. The main island wasn't where their objective was. However, teleporting to that island would cause attention to the Princess of Heart, Kairi. Therefore, they would have to find another way onto the island. The search for another passage led them to Zeke's Boats, a boat rental shop.

"We want a boat." Xaldin spoke. It would be better for him to speak. Who knows what Larxene was tempted to do in this kind of situation!

"That'll be 300 munny per hour to rent." Zeke, an old man with a hunchback, told them. "I also need a 100 munny deposit."

Xaldin smirked a bit. "I don't believe you heard me. I said we want a boat. I never said that we wanted to rent a boat."

"Are you daft?" the old man responded. "Do you really think that I am going to just let you have a boat?"

"Either you rent us a boat or all of your other boats sink to the bottom of the ocean." The whirlwind lancer told them. Raising his hands, Xaldin summoned a wind storm on one of the boats. A mini-tornado swirled around the boat, destroying it in an instant.

The old man's face paled. Xaldin's smirk widened. "Now you can lose one boat or all of your boats. It's your decision."

Within mere moments, the three Organization members were on a boat, sailing to the island where the children played.

* * *

Sora was in the town's square with Donald, Goofy, Cid, Yuffie, Leon, Aierth and Cloud in tow. It was an almost familiar feeling. However, he couldn't help but feel that his presence was alien. But why was that? This was where he grew up. Was it because he had been away for such a long time?

In any case, the group decided that it would be better to head to the Children's Island first and recover the Princess of Heart before the bad guys do.

* * *

Kairi made it on the island at 10 in the morning. She wore a happy smile on her face. Although she hadn't resolved the issue of which boy she liked more, it wasn't important. She had a feeling that she would see both of them today. Seeing her friend Selphie, she waved to the brunette and ran in her direction.

"So what has you in a good mood today?" Selphie asked.

"I feel that I will finally find what I lost a year ago" was the redhead's response.

"Really? What's that?" Kairi's energetic friend was curious. What could have Kairi meant by that statement? "I am glad that you are happy but, can you please inform me as to what do you mean by that statement? I don't think I follow."

"You will see." She winked. "You will all see and then I will be proven right all along."

Selphie started to see where this was going. She was talking about the two people that she made up, Sora and Riku. The brunette thought that she was going mad. How could people in someone's imagination just pop out from nothing. However, Kairi was smiling. And if it meant that Kairi would smile, she would believe in the imagination.

* * *

Riku and King Mickey finally made it to the door at the end of the road. This door would lead them onto Destiny Island where Sora and Kairi awaited them. Just the thought of them waiting for him with open arms warmed his heart. But he traded them all for darkness. Would they accept him with open arms or openly hate him?

Not being one to mull on things longer than need be, Riku prepared the ritual to open the door from his side.

* * *

Within the hour, the Keyblade Master had reached the island alone.

"_Guys, let me do this on my own." Sora told them. "Please stay here."_

"_But, ah, Sora" Goofy stuttered. "You numbskull!" Donald chastised "Sora needs to do this on his own."_

_The Captain of the Royal Guard looked at his friend Sora with forlorn eyes. His nod almost imperceptive, Goofy watched as the brunet took one of the canoes and paddled his way to the island._

It was 11 when he arrived. He could hear children's laughter on the other side. Sora would go to them later. Right now, he was on a mission. His mission was to open the door and save Riku.

He entered that cave where the mysterious door resided. As a kid, he always wanted to know what was on the other side of the door. After many explorations of the door, he and Riku were no where close to figuring out the secrets on the other side. Force wouldn't work on the door, nor would any keys. It didn't make any sense. Of course, when they told their parents about it, none of them believed that there was a door, believing that it was just in their imagination.

Who would have known that the key to opening that door is now in his hand!

Approaching the door with all confidence, he summoned the Keyblade to his hands, appearing in the form of the Kingdom Key. Sora was not fighting any enemies at the moment, so there was no use for any keychains.

Raising his Keyblade high, he closed his eyes and wished with all of his might that the door would open.

Kairi felt her heart beat hard. There was an influx of power on the island. She could feel it. It could be coming from one place. Without preamble, she ran to the other side of the island where the mysterious door existed.

Riku saw the outer edges of the door shine with a bright light. Having lived in darkness for so long, he had to cover his sea-green eyes to protect them from the blinding light. The Hero of Dark lifted his Keyblade high and proceeded to wish as Sora was.

* * *

Xaldin, Luxord and Larxene felt the influx and smiled. All was going according to plan. Luxord tapped on his jacket and he could hear static. "Zexion, is the girl ready?" he asked.

Zexion, from his perch on one of the adjoining islands looked at the girl in the white dress, Namine. "She's is ready. Are you there?"

"We will be on the island in five minutes." The gambler commanded. "Begin to overflow the memories."

Zexion looked at the girl. She looked back with dead eyes. "You want me to flood everyone's memories of Sora and Riku." She told him. It wasn't as if she was asking a question. She knew that was her purpose in the Organization all along. She was a tool for them to seek ultimate power.

Namine began to draw. Her drawings of Sora and Riku were simple at first, beginning from the night of the catastrophe and working backwards. Within minutes, the memories of Sora and Riku were finished. Though the drawings were crude, they served the purpose. She waved a hand over her drawings. Now that she began the process, it couldn't be stopped. It could only increase with speed, which is the reason that she repeatedly waved her hands over the drawings.

"Excellent. All is going to plan." Zexion chuckled darkly.

Just then, he felt a ripple in darkness. Turning around, he saw a figure in a trench coat just like his own. The hood was drawn so the identity was hidden. In this mysterious person's hand was a Keyblade.

"Roxas, is that you?" the schemer asked.

Without warning, Number VI was struck with the blunt side of the Keyblade, knocking him out instantly. This figure walked calmly towards Namine.

To say that she was surprised would be an understatement. She didn't realize what was going on. She believed that it was her good friend Roxas.

"Roxas, what are you doing here?" Before she could ask anything else, she found herself face-to-face with the Keyblade. It was turned slowly, as someone would a regular key. In that moment, Namine fainted.

The hooded person looked out of a window. From it, the Children's Island could be seen.

* * *

Leon and the gang that was left behind could feel the influx of power growing stronger. Now there was also something else happening. It was as if their hearts were constricted. Their memories of Sora and Riku were flooding into their minds so quickly that it was hurting them.

_Sora was in trouble_, they all thought. Taking a boat, they rowed to the island.

There was a faint click that could be heard from the door. It was open. Riku was finally free. All he had to do was walk through the door. Smiling at the king, they both boldly walked through the door, covering their eyes till they adjusted to the light.

Kairi entered the cave, feeling a gust of wind from the entrance. She could see one of the boys that she wanted to see for such a very long time. His spiky brown hair put a smile on her face. Sora was back.

The redhead saw the door open. The first thing that she saw was silver hair. Riku was back. Sora and Riku was back.

"Sora, Riku!" She called out to the boys. Kairi ran to be near them, to feel their presence.

Sora turned around to see Kairi and turned around to see Riku. He did it. They were back.

Riku looked at the loves of his life with their smiling faces. He couldn't help but smile. He was home. Wherever Sora and Kairi were was home.

The three friends were reunited and it felt so good. All were oblivious to the tiny king of Disney Castle. However, Mickey didn't mind being ignored. After all, it was their moment.

"I knew you guys were coming back. I just knew it." Kairi started to tear up.

Riku smirked. "Did you really believe that something so insignificant as Ansem was going to stop me from coming back?"

"I knew that I would be reunited with you guys." Sora smiled with all of his heart.

Laughter could be heard from the end of the cave. "Isn't this cute? Three friends reunited after so long. It makes my nonexistent heart warm."

The foursome turned around and saw three figures in black trench coats at the entrance of the cave. Removing the hood revealed themselves a man with blond hair and a goatee, a woman with blond hair and an animalistic look on her face, and a man with long black hair and an air of authority. In the woman's hand was a box.

The woman spoke. "I would like you to get yourself out of the way. We need to get into Kingdom Hearts."

Sora, immediately sensing danger, drew his Keyblade and got into a fighting stance. Riku and the King were not far behind. "Who are you?" Sora demanded.

"Ah," the woman chuckled. It looks as if she was going to fight. "I'm sorry. Where are my manners? My name is Number XII, Larxene. You won't have to remember this. Pretty soon, you won't remember anything."

"Number III, Xaldin."

"Number X, Luxord. We represent Juusan Kikan, an Organization that wants to get into Kingdom Hearts. Resist us and be destroyed."

Sora, Riku, and Mickey had no idea who they were, but they were not going to use Kingdom Hearts for their own purposes. So they charged at the enemies.


	6. The 13th Struggle

Chapter 6: The 13th Struggle

Author's Note: An awesome boss song. I really love it. By the way, for those Bleach fans among you, you will recognize one, maybe two elements from this chapter. I will explain at the end of the chapter.

* * *

_We convey our feelings through battles. What need do we have for a heart?_

A Pulse ran through the earth. Aerith could feel it. There was a fight going on somewhere on this world. "Guys, I think Sora is in trouble." She whispered. The throbbing pain was starting to get to her. She couldn't concentrate on her direction. However, the gang was in no better shape. Cid, Leon, Cloud and Yuffie were holding their heads as if under the thrall of a powerful migraine.

"What in tarnation is going on?" Cid groaned in pain. His question fell on deaf ears because the people with him were in pain as well.

Donald and Goofy were in the most pain. Because out of all the people in the group, they shared the most memories of Sora and, when the memories started to flood, they experience a pain unlike any battle wound. However, they were not letting pain stop them from reaching Sora. Gritting their teeth, or teeth analogue, the group continued to row.

* * *

Sora raised his Keyblade at Larxene and swung down. However, she was too quick for the teen and she dodged the attack. The female Nobody laughed at Sora's attempt to attack. "Is that all the Keyblade Master has to offer?" she taunted.

Sora, although he tried his best to make an attack on Larxene, was unsuccessful. She was just too fast for him. As he was about to make another strike, the brunet saw a glint of metal coming from her hands. _Knives_?

Larxene threw three kunai knives expertly: one embedding into Sora's right arm, one in his stomach and one at his left leg. Sora dropped his Keyblade in pain and fell to his knees, howling and removing the knives in a desperate attempt to stop the pain.

Riku and Mickey were not faring any better.

Riku took on Luxord but was having trouble getting past his card defense. Every time Riku lunged in for an attack, the gambling Nobody shuffled his deck of cards and spread them out to guard against attack. The dark hero's attack left him open for a boot to the stomach, courtesy of the gambler.

The silver-haired boy gasped precious lungful of air. Then he heard a scream, a scream he would give his entire existence never to hear again. One of his loves, Sora, was stabbed by the woman's knives and he was frantically trying to put them out. He didn't remember hearing himself call out Sora's name, nor did he hear Luxord command his cards to attack him. The flurry of the cards hit him with a force that he didn't expect from something light and insubstantial. The last thing that he remembered was hitting the cavern wall with such force that he cracked the wall where Sora and Kairi drew pictures of themselves eating the papou fruit, effectively destroying the crude drawings..

Mickey was doing the best out of all of them, but that wasn't saying much. Xaldin was having a difficult time landing an attack on a small, agile foe. Mickey, although he didn't possess a large dominating frame, was an experienced fighter, being trained by the one that gave him his Keyblade. As the lancer launched one of his six weapons, Mickey would jump into the air and strike the Nobody. It would have been a clear victory for the King of Disney Castle except Xaldin used his six lances to its fullest potential, creating a makeshift cage to trap the regal mouse and starting a tornado with its locus in the cage. Mickey was torn apart by the wind; it left him exhausted.

With the three distractions out of the way, Larxene, with the mysterious box in left hand, sauntered triumphantly towards the mysterious door. She realized that Kairi, one of the Princesses of Heart, was in her way. Her lips turned upward into a cruel smirk. "Well, isn't this my lucky day?" The sadist smirked sinisterly. "Not only did I get to harm your little friend, it also seems as if I get to capture one of the Princesses of Heart."

Kairi looked around only to see Riku bleeding from hitting the wall, Sora clutching his stab wounds in pain, and Mickey on the floor exhausted. She backed up against the door that Riku had just come out of. Although it was open, there was some force preventing her from going through it, like an invisible wall. The female Nobody stalked towards her. "Please get away from the door." She ordered in a calm, but threatening voice. It wasn't so much a request as it was a command. "I don't want to have to hurt you" she whispered, procuring a blade from the cuff of her long black leather jacket "but I will if I need to."

Loud, labored breathing alerted the female Nobody to turn her attention to Sora who was standing up despite the wounds he received earlier. The sadist turned around to see the teen defiantly raising his weapon at her. The Keyblade Master had his weapon drawn and ready to attack. Larxene just smirked and held out a hand towards the brunet. "Just give up already." She shot a blast of electricity at Sora which made him fly past the other two Nobodies and near the entrance to the cave.

* * *

Leon and the group were trying their best to row to the island with their headaches. Goofy and Donald were not about to leave their best friend alone and so, they forced themselves to row. Who knows? Sora might be going through the same pain as they were.

They were almost to the Children's Island. A few meters more and they could swim to the shore. The pain was almost unbearable but the thought of Sora in danger kept them rowing.

From the port side of the raft, they saw an unusual site that made stop to look at it. It was a person running on water faster than most humans can run. This person had on a long black trench coat that covered up the face in darkness. From the body structure, one could tell that the trench coat figure had fought in some combat, shoulders broadened and arms filling out the sleeves of the jackets.

Leon and the gang saw the opening of the hood face them. It was then that they noticed gloved hands reaching ahead of the person. In front of the gloved hands, a Keyblade materialized. Before any one of them could register shock, the raft was caught in a whirlpool. All of the passengers tried their best to hold on.

"That person caused this." Donald realized. Being attuned to magical force, he was the first to realize that his weapon was just like Sora's Keyblade as it functioned in the same manner when manipulating magic.

But that wasn't the main concern. The main concern was to survive the whirlpool. Oddly enough, none of them had fallen overboard yet. Was it part of the hooded person's plan to distract them from something? Donald took out his staff and began to chant spells to stop the whirlpool as the others hung on for their lives.

* * *

"Princess, I won't say it again." Larxene grounded out. "If you don't move, I will hurt you. I may have orders not to kill you but I will not hesitate in incapacitating you."

Kairi was scared for her life. If the trench coated people were able to take out Riku and Sora, the two strongest people she knew, what chance did she stand? However, there was a reason that the blonde woman did not attack her. She was important to them as a Princess of Heart. If that is true, then she might have a bargaining chip. She also could not allow such a villain to use Kingdom Hearts to her own ends. "I am not moving." She emphasized every syllable.

Meanwhile, Xaldin and Luxord were patiently waiting for Larxene to plant the box so they could be finished with their mission.

The savage nymph sighed and drew a knife. "Sadly, we are going to have to do this the hard way, aren't we?" She lunged at Kairi who shut her eyes.

There was a light clink, the sound of metal hitting metal. Kairi peeked from one of her eyes.

In front of her was someone with a black trench coat just like the other three. However, the difference was that this person's hood was still over the head. This person was also holding what looked like a long silver object that looked suspiciously familiar.

"A Keyblade?" Larxene said in surprise. Xaldin and Luxord were equally surprised because this person seemed to have come out of nowhere. The only hint to how that person escaped attention was the fluttering of wind that gently pulled at their jackets. That person was extremely fast.

Kairi opened her eyes completely. The blonde woman was right. It was a Keyblade like Sora's, Riku's and the mouse's. What made this person's Keyblade stand out was, while Sora's was platinum, Riku's was orange-red like a sunset, and the mouse's was gold, this person's Keyblade was silver.

"Roxas, is that you?" She asked angrily. Larxene was not in the mood to play games after the Princess slighted her by not complying.

"Not Roxas" the voice, a smooth bass and obviously male, told her. With that, he brought his Keyblade down on the box and smashed it. It broke apart in a flash of light.

Larxene broke into a string of curses. How dare this guy wear the robes of Juusan Kikan and defy her. On top of that, he destroyed whatever was in the box that the Superior wanted her to bring to the entrance of Kingdom Hearts. But what really pissed off the Savage Nymph was the fact that she didn't see or sense this person coming.

Grabbing his Keyblade with both hands, the man in the hooded trench coat hit her with such force that she went flying out of the cave, but not before knocking Luxord with her.

Xaldin had little time to react when he felt a boot to his chest that sent him flying out of the cave as well, leaving the defeated Keyblade Masters and one Princess of Heart still inside recovering from the surprise attack of the people in the black trench coats.

Kairi sank to her knees. The nerves that she had built to stand up to the blonde woman had left her and now she was shivering in fear and adrenaline. She could have died. The redhead reflexively started to cry. She wasn't a warrior. Her place wasn't on the battle field. She turned to Sora and Riku's defeated form. Even if they were beaten by the people in the trench coat, they have some way of defending themselves.

She was only in the way, Kairi realized. She needed to be protected. How could she understand what both of them go through if she did not experience everything that they endure? How could she love either boy without experiencing their pains as warriors? The redhead realized that today is the last day that she will allow herself to be weak.

* * *

Outside the cave, there was a fierce battle going on.

Xaldin launched one of his lances at the enemy but the hooded man dodged with such ease and grace. Larxene threw six daggers at the person but all she hit was air. Luxord shuffled his cards and pinched the ends of the deck, pointing it at the offender.

**52 CARD PICK UP**

The deck was launched and guided by magic. The Keyblade wielder held out his gloved hand in an open palm.

"_Dominator, Mask of blood and flesh, all living beings fluttering, that which bears the name Human, Inferno and pandemonium. The sea barrier surges, March on to the south!"_

A red ball of energy formed around gloved hands, aiming at the cards that were moving towards him.

**WAY OF DESTRUCTION, NUMBER 31, RED FLAME CANNON  
**

The red fireball exploded at the cards and shot through them to hit Luxord square in the stomach. The force of the attack sent the gambler barreling across the sand.

All attacks stopped. Larxene and Xaldin started to analyze their enemy. The hood prevented his identity from being compromised. And because they didn't know who he was, this meant that they couldn't gauge his potential. He also has a Keyblade. It is a powerful weapon to those who know how to use it. This individual was also extremely fast, so fast that they couldn't eyes couldn't catch his movements. Plus, whatever he did to Luxord was probably just the nadir of his power.

"Oh," the man in the trench coat spoke. "Allow me to return that which belongs to you." His Keyblade was now pointed towards the ground, leaving a space between it and the sand. He turned the weapon like one turns a key. Dark energies swirled under the space. From out of those energies, Number VI, the one known as Zexion, appeared, his body lying limp on the sandy beach.

Luxord got himself out of the sand just to see the body of one of his comrades next to the enemy. From far away, he couldn't tell who was defeated. Surveying the situation, the gambler noticed that both Xaldin and Larxene were standing against the man in Organization apparel. So if it isn't one of them, then the only possibility was…

"I didn't kill him for a reason." The man told the told the members of Juusan Kikan. He grabbed the cloaked schemer under his arm and lifted him effortlessly. "Tell your master that the Knight Errant has declared war on him."

With that, he threw Zexion at Xaldin's feet. "Who are you?" The whirlwind lancer demanded, grabbing the unconscious dark-silver haired member.

The Knight Errant placed his index finger to his lips in the universal sign of silence. "We'll just keep that under wraps for a while, okay?" He then made his way towards the sea, keeping his back to it while facing the enemies. "Here is a lovely parting gift."

His Keyblade was pointed towards the sea as it turned like a key would to a lock.

**Unseal, the terror of the deep, Leviathan**.

A giant monster erupted out of the water. It was a crossbreed between a whale, a snake, and a crocodile. It was about 5 meters off the shore. This creature bared its fangs to the members of Juusan Kikan and let loose an ear-piercing roar.

Xaldin, the oldest member of the four, realized the power of this beast and the futility of trying to fight someone who they just met while trying to protect their comrades. Even if they could win against this man, it would make no difference as he destroyed whatever was in that box that Larxene was holding before. It was time to cut their losses and leave.

"Leviathan, Tsunami." The Knight Errant commanded.

There was silence for a space and then, the creature known as Leviathan spewed out a giant tidal wave that was hurtling at them at speeds faster than a normal tide. It was time to retreat before they were washed away with the tide. "Larxene, Luxord, we are leaving."

The savage nymph growled but made no complaint. Manipulating dark energies rather quickly, they hastily created a portal to escape being caught in the pull of the wave.

As quickly as it came, the waters receded back to the creature. A growl indicating submissiveness emitted from Leviathan as the beast returned to the sea, disappearing.

The Knight Errant made his way back to the cave where the other Keyblade Masters and the Princess of Heart were just getting over their defeat.

* * *

Riku, coming back from unconsciousness, blinked rapidly his eyes to adjust to the scant light of the cave. Kairi, seeing that her friend was coming back, ran over to the silver haired teen. "Riku, are you alright?" She asked, concerned tears were starting to make their way from her eyes.

Riku, in very great pain after hitting the wall with such tremendous force, turned his head with great difficulty to face tearful, red eyes from the girl that he loved very much. Ignoring the pain, he caught an stray tear that was starting to make its way down her lovely cheek, a little satisfied when he saw a faint blush on her cheek. "Go check on Sora." He whispered hoarsely; even his voice was in pain.

Riku needed to know that the boy that he loved very much was okay. Out of all of them, the brunet took the most damage and the knife wounds could become serious if they are not taken care of immediately.

Kairi nodded and ran to Sora with the intent of checking on him. However, a wayward thought entered her mind. When Riku touched her cheek, it was all she could do from hugging him on the spot. Her heart jumped and started beating rapidly. She almost forgot to breathe. What was this feeling?

The redhead knelt to where Sora was laying. The blood from the knife wounds was slowly seeping through his clothes, leaving a dark stain on them. The pain from the wounds and the lightning blast left him in a near comatose state. His chest was not moving meaning that either he wasn't breathing or he was but not by much. Kairi caught her gasp of sadness at the pitiful state that Sora was in. But the wellsprings of her eyes decided that the dam of tears was pointless to stop. She cried for Sora. She cried for Riku.

One of her tears dropped between Sora's eyes and he groaned. As he opened his eyes and his world came into focus. He saw Kairi desperately trying to wipe the flowing tears in her eyes. His blue eyes showed sadness and empathy. His hand descended on her knee gently and her attention immediately fell on him.

"Kairi, don't cry." He asked. "When you cry, it makes me want to cry. So please don't cry."

The soft words that entered her ears made its way to her heart. There was that feeling again. It was the same feeling that she felt when Riku wiped away her tears. What is this feeling and why were these two boys able to invoke it?

All of a sudden, Kairi could hear music coming from outside the cave. It was as if someone was playing a violin. Not only that, but there was also a sweet aroma coming from outside. This was no ordinary song and aroma. There was power coming from this song. A green aura started to surround Sora, Riku and Mickey. Within a minute, the three warriors started to get up, their pain forgotten.

"Do you hear music?" Mickey asked no one in particular. The others nodded.

"We should go to the source of the music." Riku put in.

Making their way out of the cave, they saw one of those people in the black trench coat holding a flash of light that became a Keyblade. The three warriors held out their weapons to challenge the person when they held laughter.

"Are you serious?" The man in the trench coat asked, laughing at their ridiculous united front. "The three members of Juusan Kikan wiped the floor with you. In turn, I beat them. Are you saying that you can defeat me?"

"Who are you?" Sora demanded.

"For now, you can call me the Knight Errant." The man in the hooded trench coat told them.

"What is your goal?" Riku asked him, teeth bared to show some defiance to the Knight Errant.

"What does it matter?" he responded. "Even if I told you, you wouldn't be able to understand. So, for right now, I'll keep my goals to myself."

There was silence. No one knew how to fill it. "Do you know about Juusan Kikan?" The Knight Errant asked. Seeing no one respond, he took it as a sign to continue. "Juusan Kikan: they are an Organization that is trying to get into Kingdom Hearts."

There was a collective gasp from the four as the Knight Errant continued. "They have no hearts and, as such, cannot feel emotions. They can exaggerate anger, fear, and love but they cannot truly feel it. Because of this, they hate those who are not like them. They hate those with hearts and so, they plan to make their way into Kingdom Hearts to retrieve the hearts they once lost."

The Knight Errant sighed. "It may be cruel but they cannot be allowed to have their hearts back." He saw Kairi's lips about to form a question. "Each of the members of Juusan Kikan has control over an element and a Nobody archetype."

"What is a Nobody?" Sora asked in a quiet voice, unsure of how to take this.

"Nobodies are like Heartless in a way. When a person's heart succumbs to darkness, it becomes a Heartless. It operates out of instinct to fill a void that its dark heart has caused. It is instinctual and needs to be controlled by someone with great powers in order to be useful. On the flipside, Nobodies are what is left of the soul when one's heart succumbs to darkness. The body returns as a grotesque creature that attacks others in a need to become whole. These creatures are like Heartless as they are commanded by those of strong will and subjugation. They are all controlled by Juusan Kikan. They are the most powerful Nobodies in the universe."

The Knight Errant already anticipated their question. "I am telling you this because they will come after you. Right now, you are weak and they could have killed you right now. But they need you."

"Why do they need us?" Kairi asked.

"As of right now, I don't know. But beware! They will stop at nothing to get what they want from you." The Knight Errant sighed and put his gloved hands into his hood, as if to pinch his brow. "They've already struck the first blow on this island."

"What do you mean?" Riku asked, somewhat afraid of the answer.

"Under their thrall is a powerful Nobody called Namine." The man in the hooded trench coat answered. "She has the power to manipulate memories. Kairi, this is why no one was able to remember Sora and Riku."

Sora and Riku looked in shock at Kairi who nodded in agreement.

"However, to prevent you from stopping their goals to get into Kingdom Hearts, they had Namine return the memories at a dangerous rate. Because of this, everyone on this star was overrun by the return of memories. This caused them to enter a state of comatose irresponsiveness. They will never wake up again. They are as good as dead."

Kairi gasped as she collapsed crying. Sora and Riku held her up to comfort her and lend their strong shoulders for the redhead to cry on.

"Before coming here, I tried to stop it but to no avail. The process had already started and only could be increased from there. But do not succumb to despair, for there were some survivors. There are some children who have strong hearts that wouldn't surrender to death's sweet embrace. They will have a strong hand in what happens from here."

The Knight Errant held his Keyblade to the sky and turned it. Dark energies domes started to form on the beach. When they dissipated, familiar bodies revealed themselves: Tidus, Zidane, Locke, Bartz, Rikku, Paine, Lulu, Wakka and Yuna. "These children will have a roll to play when they recover. Now I am asking you. Will you fight against Juusan Kikan?"

All of this information was overwhelm to the teens. "What are you getting out of this, Knight Errant?" Mickey asked before the others could formulate thoughts.

"I fight Juusan Kikan to correct a mistake that I made in the past." He answered. "For now, that's all you need to know."

A sharp cry came from the sea. All turned to face the sound. It was Donald and Goofy, running out of the raft to greet their king. "Your Majesty, you are alright." They called in unison. Mickey waved continually until they came before him and knelt in respect.

"Aw guys, you don't have to do this now." He said bashfully. In that moment, Leon, Cid, Aerith, Yuffie and Cloud walked to the King and bowed in respect.

"You should take these children to the hospital off of this world." The Knight Errant commanded, causing all attention to be on him. "They will die if they don't receive medical attention."

Donald quacked in anger. "That's the guy who created the whirlpool." He shrilled, pointed to the man in the hooded trench coat.

"It was to prevent you from getting overwhelmed by the flood of memories." He explained. "Do you remember getting headaches when you were fighting the whirlpool?"

Donald and the group had to nod their heads in the affirmative. There was no headache once the whirlpool hit. "Plus, there was no way that you could have stood up to Juusan Kikan. You would have died trying."

"Sora, Riku and Kairi, you three should stay here on this island." The Knight Errant commanded. "I feel that something will happen in the next two weeks which will greatly empower you. Before I go though …."

He then pointed his Keyblade at Sora and Riku and turned it. In an instant, their clothes changed. Riku's clothes were changed into two sleeveless vests, the inside one black and the outside very light yellow, and jeans. Sora's clothes were just like his old ones except it was black and longer to so that they did not look small on him.

"Why did you give us some new clothes?" Sora asked, completely confused.

"Two reasons. And the second one is these clothes will allow you to break the limits that your body couldn't normally handle. With training, you will unlock abilities that you didn't realize that you had. Soon, you will be able to fight Juusan Kikan on equal grounds."

"What's the first reason?" Riku asked, his voice carrying a dangerous edge.

There was a laugh from the Knight Errant. "The first reason? Your old clothes stink to high heaven."

The man in the hooded trench coat created a portal of darkness and stepped through it, disappearing into nothingness.

The crew just stood there looking at the space where the Knight Errant disappeared from. There was one collective thought. _What the hell is going to happen now?_


	7. Jiminy's Journal and Omake I

Jiminy Cricket's Journal: Part I

Hello, Guys. Jiminy Cricket here. Let's read out of my notes to see where everyone is.

* * *

Main Characters

Sora:

Sora is a 15 year old boy with chestnut hair that spikes in many different directions. He has a smile that could banish clouds away. He also has a strong sense of justice and can't stand to see people in trouble. He will do everything in his power to stop evil in its tracks. Sora grew up with his friends, Riku and Kairi, on Destiny Islands, where they share a bond of friendship. He is known as the Hero of Light.

Sora has been searching for Riku, who was lost in the World of Darkness in Kingdom Hearts. His journey took him to worlds where he has been declared a hero and a savior. However, he doesn't care for such titles and would rather be back home with Riku and Kairi. This is interrupted when Queen Minnie of Disney Castle charged him with a question to go back to Destiny Island and protect the Princess of Heart and bring the King of Disney Castle and the Hero of Dark back from the clutches of Kingdom Hearts.

Sora is able to do so, but their reunion is cut short because of Juusan Kikan members': Larxene, Luxord, and Xaldin. The three warriors fight but unable to overcome them. Sora is critically injured but is healed by the Knight Errant who tells him about Juusan Kikan's plan concerning Kingdom Heart. Sora now stays on Destiny Island to wait for something to empower him.

Sora's feelings towards Riku and Kairi lean more towards a deep friendship rather than love. However, recent events have been making him explore the possibility of them as lovers.

Riku:

Riku is a 16 year old boy with platinum hair that is smooth to the touch. Cool and collected, Riku is the most mature of the group. As such, Sora and Kairi look to him for things to do. When the Heartless attacked Destiny Islands, Riku embraced the darkness as a way of escape from his bigoted father, enticed by Ansem. However, his battle with Sora at Hollow Bastion left him remorseful of what he did. To make up for this, Riku helped Sora close the door to Kingdom Hearts from the inside, trapping him and Mickey.

Riku and King Mickey wandered around the World of Darkness without a clue as how to escape. During this wandering, Riku reflects on all of the things that made him choose the path that he did. He becomes remorseful and regrets ever allowing the Heartless to attack the Island.

Riku, during his wanderings, found a Keyblade called Way to the Dawn. It was meant for the Hero of Dark. That is Riku. By taking his Keyblade, a rift in time and space was opened, allowing King Mickey to talk to Merlin and the Fairy Godmother. He told them of how they could get out, through Destiny Island. The King told them to tell Sora and they do so. With Sora's help, they are able to escape the World of Darkness. Unfortunately, Juusan Kikan revealed themselves, cutting short the reunion. They made quick work of Riku. But, because of the intervention of the Knight Errant, Riku survived. Now, he wants on Destiny Island for something to empower him.

Riku loves both Sora and Kairi. His task before the darkness came to Destiny Island was to get both of them to love him back. Soon, he will make his feelings known. Perhaps they will reciprocate.

Kairi:

Kairi is a 15 year old girl with red hair that she is growing. Ever the optimist, she is the one to go to whenever Sora or Riku was feeling down. She is not a native to the Island, having arrived here from Hollow Bastion. No one knows how she got here, not even Kairi herself. One day, she was just found on the shore and taken in by the mayor of Destiny Island. She joined Sora and Riku in their play and the three became fast friends. This continued until she was 14, which is when the Heartless attacked the Island.

Through a strange set of coincidences, Kairi lost her heart and it was given to Sora for safekeeping. Her body, however, was found on the Lost Boy's Island in Neverland. It was recovered by Riku and Captain Hook. Riku, under the thrall of Ansem, taunted Sora with Kairi's body and took her with him to Hollow Bastion. After Sora had defeated Riku the first time, Ansem took control of Riku and waited for Sora to come to him. It was then that Sora learned of the location of Kairi's heart. With Ansem's control over Riku severed on upon his defeat by Sora, the Hero of Light stabbed himself with Ansem's Keyblade, releasing the heart that was inside of him.

Kairi awoke and was lead out of Hollow Bastion by Donald and Goofy. Although Ansem tried to follow, Riku stopped him, allowing the three of them to escape. A short while later, a Heartless followed after them. Kairi was the first to realize that this was Sora and somehow transformed him back. After reaching Traverse Town, Kairi gave Sora her lucky charm and told him to return it when he came back. The last time that she saw either Sora or Riku was when they were closing the door to Kingdom Hearts. Sora and Kairi were separated and she stayed on Destiny Island ever since.

Kairi was devastated when neither of the boys came back but was more devastated when no one on the Island remembered either of the boys. She started to sink into depression. It continued until she was contacted by the Princesses of Heart. Being one herself, she was able to hear their wishes loud and clear. She was told that there was something coming to threaten her life. The only ones that could stop that were the Heroes of Light and Dark. Kairi is suppose to bring them to Island at the light of the full moon so that the Princesses of Heart can talk to them. During the attack from Juusan Kikan, she realized that she is just a burden on Sora and Riku, a princess whose only role is to be protected. Perhaps she will change that.

Kairi is unable to choose between Sora and Riku. She had problems explaining to Selphie which one of them held first in her heart and, as such, is at a crossroad when trying to explain the feelings in her heart. She feels she has to make a choice but perhaps she doesn't have to.

Mickey: The King of Disney Castle, Mickey is one of the wielders of the Keyblade. His mission is to stop the influx of evil spreading through the universe via the Heartless. His journey has taken him to see Ansem and warn him about experimenting with the Heartless. He has also learned that there is something off about the Ansem that took over Riku and that he wasn't the same Ansem that he meant with many years ago. So, to stop the influx of Heartless, he journeyed to the World of Darkness and into Kingdom Hearts itself. With Sora's help, he was able to shut the door on his end.

After a year of wandering, he and Riku, his traveling companion in the World of Darkness, they had found a means of escape. It was through the door on Destiny Island. With Sora's help, they were free from the World of Darkness, only to be ambushed by Juusan Kikan. They were defeated but through the intervention of the Knight Errant, Mickey and the others were saved. What is to happen to the King of Disney Castle now?

Knight Errant:

Little is known about this person but his strength is undeniable. He easily defeated Juusan Kikan and forced the three members to retreat. He also holds a Keyblade but as to what powers does it hold remains unseen. The Knight Errant says that he is trying to correct a mistake that he made but as to what that is, no one but he knows. As a parting gift, he gave Sora and Riku clothes that will help them break the limits of the human body. What that is remains to be seen.

Minor Characters

Donald and Goofy

Donald and Goofy are retainers to the King of Disney Castle. They are given a charge. Find the one with the 'key' and protect him. They found Sora and have been traveling with him to seal all of the worlds. By doing so, they stop the Heartless from taking the world's heart. They are loyal to both the King and Sora and will protect them to the best of their abilities. Donald, in battle, wields a staff and powerful magic is his to command. Goofy, on the flipside, wields a shield that defends against all. They are surely a dynamic duo not to be taken lightly in battle.

Cid Highwind and his group

The creator of the dreadnaught Ragnarok, Cid is the man to go to whenever there is anything that can be solved mechanically. He and his crew hail from Hollow Bastion but were forced to abandon it because of Maleficent and her Heartless army. But now that she is gone perhaps they can return home. Leon, who has abandoned his true name of Squall Leonheart, is the de facto leader of the group. He wields the one of a kind Gunblade, a strange weapon that takes many years to master and only few have in the course of hundreds of generations. With him are Yuffie Kisaragi, a stealthy ninja who always has interesting pieces of information from her stalking in the shadows, Aerith Gainesborough, a serene woman who always has words of encouragement, and Cloud Strife, a mercenary who is looking for something and doesn't care how he goes about obtaining it.

Princesses of Heart

They are seven of the purest hearts in the entire universe. They are Aurora, Cinderella, Snow White, Alice, Jasmine, Belle, and Kairi. Their power together is enough to open the door to Kingdom Hearts. Before, Maleficent had captured all of the Princesses of Heart and opened the door to Kingdom Hearts but Sora, along with Riku and King Mickey, closed the door and stopped the Heartless from overrunning all of the worlds. Because there was no need for them, the Princesses returned to their homes. But there is an influx of evil coming and the Princesses seem to be targets again. Sora and crew will have to most likely rescue them again.

Juusan Kikan

As the name suggest, they are an organization of thirteen individuals. According to the Knight Errant, "They have no hearts and, as such, cannot feel emotions. They can exaggerate anger, fear, and love but they cannot truly feel it. Because of this, they hate those who are not like them. They hate those with hearts and so, they plan to make their way into Kingdom Hearts to retrieve the hearts they once lost." He also says that they have control over the elements. Sora, Riku, Mickey and Kairi encountered three of them: Number III Xaldin, Number X Luxord, and Number XII Larxene. Currently, they are stronger than us. Not only that, they seem to have control of the Heartless and Nobodies. The Knight Errant says that they cannot be allowed to have their hearts but as to why that is, he hasn't said.

Places of Interest

Destiny Island

This is where the journey started. Sora, Riku and Kairi lived here until the Heartless took over and snuffed out this star. When Sora closed the door to Kingdom Hearts, all of the stars were returned to normal. Destiny Island is also the place where Kairi had been for a year, waiting for the return of Sora and Riku. The main point of interest is the Children's Island, named that because that is where the children play. On the Island, there is a mysterious door that seems to be connected to Kingdom Hearts.

Disney Castle

This is our base of operations. Queen Minnie rules in the stead of the King with her advisor Daisy. Maleficent attacked recently but thankfully, no one was hurt.

Items of Interest

Keyblades

The Keyblade is an amazing weapon. Not only can it attack foes with considerable strength, but under the right conditions, it can do incredible things. Sora has used this to lock the world's heart and summon magic. The Knight Errant has used his to summon a creature known as Leviathan. But, because there is no manual or someone who knows how to use it to its fullest potential yet, the rest of its abilities remain to be seen. However, it is known that by attaching Keychains to it allows the weapon to take on different shapes. If these different shapes manifest certain abilities is yet to be determined.

Kidou

Kidou is something strange as only the Knight Errant can manifest it. It seems similar to magic but that is yet to be determined.

Shakkahou (translates into Red Fireball Crash)

A red fireball that the Knight Errant direct at his opponents. Summoned by this chant.

_Dominator, Mask of blood and flesh, all living beings fluttering, that which bears the name Human, Inferno and pandemonium. The sea barrier surges, March on to the south!_

Summons

Summons are creatures that aid the Summoner. They are different and each one manifest a different ability. Sora has summoned a few in his journey to seal Kingdom Hearts. Now that the Knight Errant has shown up, it seems that this is not a unique ability.

Leviathan

A creature of the deep. Leviathan can only be summoned where there is open sea. Although his range of battle is limited, his special ability, Tsunami, can wash all enemies to the sea where they will be at a disadvantage.

* * *

And now, Spark of Life presents OMAKE.

Laundry

Roxas is not allowed to do laundry. EVER!

Because thirteen people living in the same habitation eventually need to clean, the chores are usually divided up evenly, with, of course, The Superior getting none of them. Genius has to be free of distraction. Plus who was going to make him do it?

So back to why Roxas is not allowed to do the laundry. Well, as you know, leather is something you can't wash normally, even if you get it dirty. Roxas did not know that. So when XIII spilled red wine on his jacket, he knew that it had to be cleaned right away. Unfortunately for him, he did not know that leather, when it is dried in a dryer shrinks. So it was a surprise for him when the jacket was very tight on him.

If you think it was a surprise for Roxas, imagine Axel, seeing him in that tight jacket. His mouth watered at the form-fitting trench coat, showing off all of the beauty that was the sculpture called Roxas. Upon seeing him, the redhead pounced Roxas.

It was a good day for both of them. Although he had to get a new trench coat for missions and stuff, whenever he wore the shrunken one, it was a sign. It meant that he wanted his lover to ravish him. But it still stands; Roxas is not allowed to do laundry.

Cards

Put a poker table with Cid's crew. I wonder if you can guess is the biggest cheater.

I can tell you who it is not. It is not Yuffie. For all of her quick hands, she doesn't know how to cheat. Allow me to rephrase that. She doesn't know how to cheat in her favor. Perhaps after playing a couple of games, you would think that she would catch on, but she doesn't.

It isn't either Cloud or Leon. Neither care about the results to cheat. Also, they are honest about the game. Money comes and money goes. But if either were hurting for money, they could easily find work.

It isn't Cid. But he is the biggest complainer and the biggest gambler. He is the one that puts the most in the pot and comes out with the least.

No! The biggest cheater is Aerith, sweet unassuming Aerith. Do you want to know how she does it? Before any game, she always picks the spot where she is going to sit. It is always the same spot. This is important. She is always the first one to shuffle. When she shuffles for the first time, she gives off energy which she transfers to the cards. For every card it is a different energy or a different amount of energy. It is never enough power that no one can tell when she's cheating but enough that Aerith knows what cards are which. Now, when she can tell when someone has a good hand, she hits a compartment in the spot where she always sits. Inside of there are good hands. Making sure that no one sees her, she quickly switches her bad cards with the good hands. Sometimes she has to instigate an argument, but no one has yet caught on. She also knows when to let someone win so that she can bankrupt them later on. Her favorite patsy is Cid, who always bets big and always loses to Aerith, even though he thinks he has the best hand. Aerith always wins these poker games.

To date, she has won 30,000 munni. What she will spend it on, she hasn't decided. But soon, she will live like a queen on the money she cheats her friends out of. What they don't know will not hurt them.

Aerith smiles on the deck of the Ragnarok. Cid wants to play poker. "I'll play." Aerith smiles sweetly.

"You better, Aerith. My luck is going to turn around." Cid always says. "I will be the one to win today." He gives her the cards. "Shuffles the cards, sweetheart."

"Here we go again." She thinks to herself. Now that she thinks about it, there was a very cute dress in Disney Castle that she had her eye on. Perhaps she can afford using the winnings from this game.

Roughin' It

Being the only three on Destiny Island, it was essential that they bring all of the food in the entire star to one place. That place was in the shack on the Children's Island. However, there was only one fridge. So, how do you think that they got all of the food to the island? Well, for one thing, they needed multiple refrigerators. But how do get multiple refrigerators to one island?

Although they were sad that there were no adults, Sora, Riku, and Kairi learned that Destiny Island was their oyster. They could do things that normally wouldn't be able to do: drive a speedboat, operate a forklift, and break into people's houses. This was all in the name of collecting all of the food into one place before it spoils but why spoil a good thing?

They divided the responsibilities evenly. Sora was to take all of the food he can carry into iceboxes and put them on his speedboat. Kairi was to take all of the clothes, power strips for the refrigerators, medicals supplies, and other essentials that she could carry onto her speedboat. Riku was in charge of taking refrigerators, two at a time, onto his speedboat. Their target was the Children's Island.

All in all, they amassed six refrigerators, not counting the one that they already had in the shack, two tons of food, 100 pairs of clothes, three boxes of medical supplies, a couple of boxes of toiletries, books and other entertainment items, and anything else that they could think of. Riku also brought over some lumber, nails and tools so that he could build another shack since the first one was being occupied by the fridges. The three of them worked until dark and by that time, they had halfway finished the task.

Since it was a cool night and the new shack was not finished, the three of them decided that it would be a good idea to sleep outside like they did before that awful day.

The stars were beautiful tonight. As the three relaxed under beauty of nature, they could not help but think of what has happened over the past year.

Kairi sighed, causing the boys to look at her. "I remember our idea to leave this island." She began to reminiscence. "Is this how we had planned to lead our lives? Alone in a place that not one of us knew where we were. Did we really think this out?"

Riku grabbed Kairi's hand, making her blush. "It's better not to think of the past. What's done is done."

Sora grabbed Kairi's other hand. The blush intensified to a point where she was sure that it was permanent. "Besides, we are together and isn't that the most important part?" he asked.

The redhead nodded in agreement. They were right.

Through their hands clasped in hers, she could feel the warmth of each boy. It made her smile. This is all she ever wanted.

Another thought came to her mind. "How long do you think the electricity will last?" Neither boy had a sufficient answer for that, so it was just best to see how things would turn out to be. Today was over with and nothing can be done to change it. Tomorrow would be a new day. They had to finish that shed. With each boy's hand in hers, Kairi let eyes close and found sleep. Her knights, Sora and Riku, the Heroes of Light and Dark, would protect her.

A figure watched from a power plant. An image of the three sleeping flickered away. The person was wearing a leather trench coat in the style of Juusan Kikan. A silver Keyblade was in the person hand.

"Sleep well, you three." The Knight Errant told the fading image. "You will soon see your connection to each other."

He looked to one of two beds that he brought. On one of them was a girl with blonde hair and a white dress. The girl was fast asleep. "Namine, you will soon go home." He told the sleeping figure.

* * *

And that's the notes and Omake. I hope that you enjoyed my little side stories. I will return you to your regularly schedule fic in the next chapter. It's going to be an important one that will deal with the feelings of our threesome. So make sure that you are there for it. 


	8. Bustin' on the Beach

Chapter 7: Bustin' on the Beach

This song is the battle song in Destiny Island before the Heartless arrive. And this brings out the inner perv in me. Therefore, there's a bit of lime in this chapter.

* * *

_They choose to fight. To fight is to love and they choose to love fiercely._

Namine woke up some time after her encounter with the mystery person. She looked around and didn't recognize anything of her surroundings. There were a bunch of gauges and lights and levers and all sorts of things that looked that it required tons of knowledge to operate. She realized that she was on a bed.

With her eyes, she found someone in the standard dress of Juusan Kikan, the black trench overcoat. With the hood over this person's head, it was tough to discern the identity. However, she didn't care. She just wanted to be free. Analyzing the figure, she noticed that there was a Keyblade in his hand. It was unlike any that she had seen. She knew that Roxas's were onyx and pearl white, Sora's was platinum and the mouse king's was gold. This one was silver, pure silver. She remembered a silver Keyblade. It belonged to the man who kidnapped her. All she knew was that it wasn't Roxas. Roxas wasn't as tall as the man.

She wondered what his plans were. Was he going to kill her? That would be a relief compared to the suffering that Juusan Kikan, san Axel and Roxas, had bestowed upon her. When she thought back on them, she had a warm feeling about them. She didn't know how to characterize it. It wasn't as if she had a heart to convey these emotions but there was just something about it. She didn't know what though.

The man got up and looked at her. Well, she thought he was looking at her. She couldn't tell because the hood obscured his face. "Good evening, Namine." She cringed. It was reflexive. She had no idea what he was going to do to her. "How are you?"

Namine didn't answer. She was afraid, which, when one thought about it, was ironic. The figure nodded. "I suppose you are afraid of me. I don't blame you."

"What do you want with me?" She asked, finding her voice.

"Me? I want nothing." That surprised her. She had been used for so long, manipulating the memories of others, that the fact someone didn't want her to do something was disconcerting. "But, let me ask you a question. What do you want?" The guy was full of surprises. No one, save Axel or Roxas, had ever cared enough to ask her what she wanted. It was strange, to say the least.

"I don't want to be here anymore." She answered honestly.

"Do you want to go home?" He queried. "Do you want to return to where you belong?" She had no idea what he meant. "Do you want to be whole again? With her?" All of a sudden, she realized what he intended by that question.

"You're going to let me go?"

"She needs you, Namine. She wants to fight and she can't do it without you." Namine looked at the figure and realized that he was going to return her to Kairi. "No one's stopping you. Juusan Kikan has up and left this star. So, the decision is all yours. Do you want to go?"

"Yes." Namine responded. The figure held out his hand, the one without the Keyblade, out to her. She took it and walked with him outside wherever she was. "What is this place?"

"This is a power plant. The princess and her knights need to stay here a bit longer until they are empowered. So, they need living conditions. This power plant will supply them with electricity until the time comes when they leave this star and go to war."

Namine unconsciously could feel the soul of this man as he led her. It was powerful, light and darkness fused together in a way that she could never imagine before. "Who are you?"

"Knight Errant shall suffice, Namine. Now hold on to my hand." He led her to the sea and stepped onto the water. When Namine saw this, she expected that he would be submerged but he stepped onto the water, he walked on top of it. He led her across and she found out that she could walk on top of the water as well.

"How are you doing this?" She asked.

"It's all a process of mind over matter." The Knight Errant responded.

After walking across the surface of the water, they made their way to the Children's Island. The Knight Errant let go of Namine's hand and walked towards the beach where Sora, Kairi and Riku were sleeping. None of them noticed the two's presence. "Do you want to return?" He asked. She nodded. "Then, return!" The blonde girl walked towards Kairi and smiled wanly. She is about to be complete.

Namine held out her hand to Kairi. An unconscious redhead's hand was pulled as if by some sort of wires. The Nobody grabbed her hand then she faded away, as if but a whisper. The Knight Errant turned away and headed back to the plant. "Sleep well, Princess. You have a long day tomorrow." He disappeared across the water, creating a powerful wave with his tremendous speed.

* * *

Kairi felt herself sinking a world that wasn't light or darkness. It was strange. It felt like a dream and reality at the same time. There was something pulling at her, beckoning her to come and she obeyed. For some reason, she suddenly stopped. Whatever was drawing her to this had stopped and appeared before her. Kairi saw a girl about her age, blonde and wearing a white dress.

"Who are you?" Kairi asked.

"I'm …." Something sounding like static or wind prevented the girl from telling the Princess her name. The blonde girl looked sad. "So you can't hear it yet!" She looked away from the redhead.

"What is this?" Kairi asked, hoping to get an answer with this question.

"This is your soul, Kairi." The blonde told her. "You have come because you want to fight."

And this was true. After the encounter with Juusan Kikan and the blonde woman with the knives, she wanted to fight and protect that which was precious to her. But she was conflicted. She never fought before and fighting would mean that there would be pain and death. Kairi didn't know if she wanted this. Also, for whom will she fight: Sora or Riku? Each seemed willing to fight for her but choosing one and scorning the other made her feel bad.

"You are conflicted." The blonde girl told her, apparently knowing what is tormenting her. "You can't fight with a conflicted heart, Kairi."

"But, I don't know what to think." The redhead shouted. "Who do I choose? Sora or Riku?"

"You already know what choice you are going to make, Kairi. You needn't worry. Your heart is big enough for your wish. But you still have to make a choice. Are you going to fight?" The blonde already knew the answer.

"Yes, I want to fight." Conviction shone in her eyes.

"Then wait for him. The man with light and darkness in his heart will show you the way to call me. Call me and I will help you to protect that which you deem precious."

Kairi smiled a bit with that reassurance. "Will I ever know your name?"

The blonde girl smiled back to the Princess. "Of course you will. I promise. Think of me as you, your will to fight."

* * *

With that, Kairi woke up from her dream. The sun was rising over the horizon. The light was so bright that Kairi had to cover her eyes. She looked around and saw that both Sora and Riku draped a protective arm around her, their fingers interlocking with each other. Kairi thought that was strange. She gently disentangled herself from the boys and got up to bathe.

Kairi first made her way to the original shack on the island to get some toiletries. She made her way to a waterfall on the other side of the island. She removed her clothes and stepped under the water. It was warm and she appreciated it. She poured some shampoo on her hair and thought about the dream. It felt so real, as if the blonde girl was real. The blonde girl said something she thought was strange. '_You already know what choice you are going to make._' That was weird. The Princess didn't know what choice she was going to make. In fact, that made her more confused. She finished her ablutions and got dressed. The blonde girl said that the man with light and darkness in his heart was coming to show her the way to call the blonde girl, whatever that meant.

* * *

Riku was the next person to wake up from sleep after noticing that some of the warmth disappeared. He realized that he was holding on to Sora's hand. It made him smile. He rubbed the palm of Sora's hand with his thumb, memorizing the feel and texture of it. With that, he let go of his hand and went to look for Kairi.

Riku didn't hear the sound of a motor running before he got up, signifying that Kairi took a boat off the island. Therefore, she still had to be here somewhere. The logical place would be on the other side of the island. With that, he set off to find her. Sure enough, his hunch was right. Kairi was bathing under the waterfall. He was dumbstruck. Here was one of the objects of his affection bathing. The silver-haired boy did the only thing a sixteen year old boy would do in the presence of one of his crushes. He hid in some foliage. He felt dirty looking at her like a voyeur and yet he could not turn away when the goddess was removing the grime of last night from her body. Riku could not control his breathing and so he put a hand over his mouth and continued to watch until she finished and put on her clothes, palming himself as he watched the whole sultry scene.

* * *

Kairi, after finishing her morning ritual, walked around the island, oblivious to Riku's presence. She ambled her way to the docks, feeling as though something would happen there.

Sora woke up and realized that he overslept. Neither Kairi nor Riku were there. He decided that he'd take a quick bath and hurry to get to work on the other shack. He made his way to the waterfall, as it was the shower away from a shower if the kids were on the island. Running so that neither of the two teenagers would stop him, Sora completely missed seeing Kairi sitting on the docks and Riku hiding in the foliage.

As Sora was about to take his bath, he noticed that there were some toiletries left by the waterfall, signifying that someone else was here. Thanking whomever was here before him, the Hero of Light began his morning ritual.

* * *

Riku couldn't believe his luck, good or bad, that allowed him to see the naked forms of both of his crushes today. It wasn't even thirty minutes since the two of them stripped in front of him, oblivious to his voyeurism. Riku felt himself growing hard as he remembered Kairi and her supple, feminine form and as he watched Sora and his angular, masculine form. He could imagine himself nuzzling Kairi's perky breasts just as easily as he could imagine himself caressing Sora's member.

The heart was such a fickle and selfish thing. Sora and Kairi were two totally different people and he loved them equally. He thought himself a lost soul when he locked himself inside Kingdom Hearts. He had hoped that Sora would protect Kairi and someday fall in love with each other. That would be the penance for his dark deeds. But, when he came out of Kingdom Hearts through the Nexus and back to Destiny Island, the two embraced him as if nothing had happened. That made him feel better, even considering the reason why the island was destroyed in the first place. His dark passion led him astray, made him vulnerable to the machinations of Ansem and Maleficent. Still, there was hope that Sora and Kairi would acknowledge the fierce love that he had for the two of them.

Until then, he had only his erotic dreams to keep him company. As he felt himself swell at the knowledge that his friend was naked under the waterfall just minutes after Kairi, he bit his hand softly and with his free hand touched himself. Unzipping his pants, he allowed his sword to be free. He grabbed it and tugged on it, which would have earned a moan had he not bit on his hand. Riku imagined Kairi and Sora were taking turns pleasuring him. He could almost see their lust-filled expressions as they did their best to make the silver-haired teen feel good. It was all for him. Riku enjoyed it. He nearly forgot it was he that was caressing his member. It was he that was imagining, living in a dream world. It was he that was...

Riku could feel it coming, the climax. His imagination showed him images of Sora and Kairi writhing beneath him in pleasure, with the other one trying to bring completion to the threesome. It was that which sent him over the edge, spilling the proof of his passion on the sandy beach. His breathing was shallow and ragged. His brow was covered in sweat. When the waves of pleasure left him, Riku was filled with shame at exploiting Sora and Kairi's privacy for his own lust-filled fantasy. He put his sword away and cursed himself.

* * *

Kairi sat on the dock, waiting. She knew whatever person the blonde girl was talking about was going to come today. And sure enough, she saw a figure walking on the water. It was wearing the black trench overcoat of Juusan Kikan but in its hand was the silver Keyblade. It had to be the Knight Errant. Kairi could feel something inside of her telling her that she was correct.

The Knight Errant moved closer to the Princess and, when he was standing upon the water on the dock, he jumped upon the dock in one bound. "You've been expecting me, Princess, haven't you?" He asked

"She told me that you would be here today." She responded.

"Is that so? Well, you waiting for me means that you wish to fight for what you deem precious. Is that correct?" Kairi could feel the Knight Errant looking into her soul, even though she couldn't see his eyes.

Kairi nodded in the affirmative. "I want to fight."

"So be it. Follow me." The Knight Errant led her to the beach.

* * *

After Riku was done with his voyeurism, he went to look for Kairi. He hadn't seen her since she had finished her bath and there was a niggling feeling in his stomach that told him that all was not right with her. The silver-haired teen was about to go look for her when he heard a voice coming from the direction of the waterfall.

* * *

Sora had finished bathing and was in a rush to put on his clothes when he saw Riku. Well, the more correct thing to say was to say that he saw Riku's back. He was about to chase after him when he realized that he forgot his sneakers at the waterfall. Sora was now torn as to what to do when he stepped on something that wasn't sand. That's not true. It was sand but there was something in the sand, something sticky. He bent over to look at it. It looked like spit that the sand absorbed. He touched it and realized that it wasn't spit after all. There was something in his mind that told him that he knew what this was but this was just too much thinking for one day. Sora would file this away and peruse at a later date. Right now, he was catching up to Riku. Wiping the substance on his pants, he called out to the boy.

"Riku!" Sora called out to him. Riku turned around in surprise as the brunet ran after him. "Riku! Where are you going?" Sora then stopped and sniffed the air. There was something different with the air around Riku. "What is that smell?" he asked. "It's smells a bit salty."

Riku blanched. He didn't expect Sora to pick up on that. He didn't want Sora to realize that he enjoyed himself while watching Sora bathe. "Well, we do live on an island. It's probably the sea." Riku said a bit too quickly.

"Really? I've lived by the sea my whole life and that scent was never…." Sora shook his head. "Never mind. Where's Kairi?"

Riku was glad that Sora changed the subject. "I was about to go look for her."

"You mean she wasn't with you?" Sora then felt something prick his conscience. Something wasn't right. "Do you feel like there's something wrong?"

Riku commended Sora's empathy. "Yeah. Let's go look for her." The two nodded and set out to look for Kairi.

* * *

"Do you know what fighting entails, Princess?" The Knight Errant asked. "There will be pain, suffering and death. Even so, will you fight?"

Kairi nodded. "I don't want to be a burden on everyone. I want to stand tall with Sora and Riku. This time, I'll fight."

"Is this your true wish, Princess? If it is, then I can help you procure a weapon, but only if you truly wish to fight."

Kairi looked at the Knight Errant with steely green eyes. "I will fight."

The Knight Errant nodded… at least Kairi figured that it was a nod as the hood of his jacket flapped up and down, signifying one. He walked over to her and grabbed her left hand gently. "Then, I shall give you a weapon."

* * *

Sora and Riku was about to check the entire island when they found her on the beach with someone. They noticed the jacket as being the one that Juusan Kikan wore. They brandished their weapons and ran towards Kairi to protect her.

The Knight Errant placed a hand near her chest and moved his face towards Kairi. She could feel his breath on her lips and see the blue-green of his eyes. He whispered

_Oh Rose of the Noble Heart_

_I beseech thee_

_Come forth_

As the words were being spoken, Kairi felt herself being pushed back gently, as if being pulled. If one were looking at the scene from a distance, it looked like the Knight Errant and Kairi were posing for a harlequin cover. She saw dazzling light erupting from the gap between his hand and her chest. When the words were finished being spoken, she felt something come out of her chest. She maneuvered her head to look and was surprised to see what looked like a sword handle coming out of her chest. It looked like a blue wave gently caressing a beach. She gasped as the handle started to be pulled out of her, revealing a Keyblade that looked like water coming from a geyser. The Keyblade was removed from her body.

As Sora and Riku rushed to save Kairi, they saw something that inflamed them. The person in the black trench overcoat was encroaching on what they deemed to be theirs. The person's face was next to Kairi. The person's hand was on her chest. Then, power seemed to emanate from was happening and what looked like a sword was being pulled out of her body. Shocked, neither of them could move as the person with Juusan Kikan's jacket pulled it out of her and strangely handed the Keyblade to Kairi.

Kairi could not believe what was happening. In her hands was a Keyblade. Somehow, the Knight Errant pulled it out of her. This was entirely strange. In fact, strange didn't even cover it. Bizarre, however, was closer to the actual truth.

"This is what is called a Soul Sword, Princess." The Knight Errant told her. "This is your will to fight, manifested into a weapon. If your will to fight is strong then so is your sword. If it isn't, then your sword can shatter. Do not let it shatter, Princess, for you will shatter your own soul."

"Why does it look like a Keyblade?" She asked.

"It's not a Keyblade, just a form you are accustomed to seeing."

Kairi was dumbfounded but grateful. Now she could fight. She started to walk away when the Knight Errant called out to her. "There's one thing I forgot to mention to you, Princess." Kairi turned around and listened. "For it to activate, there needs to be a sacrifice of blood."

Sora and Riku were stunned. A sacrifice of blood? Of Kairi's blood? They wouldn't allow it. Kairi turned around, a blank look in her eyes. "My blood?" She asked, giving the Heroes' fears a form.

"No, Princess. The blood of the one who pulled it out of you in the first place. My blood."

"Your blood? Why?"

"Don't know why. It always has been this way. So now, if you truly want to fight, start with me. Let's see your resolve." The Knight Errant challenged Kairi with outstretched arms. "Please pay attention to this because, if you are able to cut me at least once, you'll need to know how to summon your Soul Sword."

_Oh Rose of the Noble Heart_

_The power that sleeps within me_

_Answer the call of thy master_

_And appear before me_

As he started to chant, a fierce wind circulated around the Knight Errant. When he finished chanting, his silver Keyblade came out of his chest, hilt first then the blade itself and the handle floated into his hand. Kairi watched and unconsciously memorized everything that the Knight did, mapping out the way that his hands stretched out and his body was poised for future reference.

"Now I don't usually have to summon my Keyblade like this but I am showing you so that you know." The Knight Errant told her. "One question, Princess. Do you know the name of your Soul Sword?" Kairi looked at the Knight as if he were strange. "I see. You haven't. I suppose that's irrelevant now. Well then, shall we begin?"

He pointed his Keyblade at Sora and Riku. Kairi looked and saw the two boys there. "Sora, Riku." She called out, surprised to see them. The two boys wanted to take her away from the Knight but they didn't realize that he put up a barrier, separating the Princess from her Heroes.

"No, no, no, Princess. This is a one-on-one fight." The Knight Errant pointed his weapon at Kairi. "Come, show me your resolve to fight."

Kairi took a deep breath. It looks like she's going to have to fight after all. She charged at the Knight with him coming at her as well. Their blades collided, sounding like metal hitting metal. "Well met, Princess. However…" With a swing, the Knight hit the Princess's Keyblade with such force that she fell down. "Please don't think that I will pull punches with you. Juusan Kikan will not recognize your sovereignty as a Princess of Heart if you choose to stand against them. Besides, you wanted to fight."

She got up in time as the Knight Errant charged at Kairi, attacking her three times. She deflected all three blows and tried to charge but was pushed back by the Knight's free hand. "I wonder why it is that you want to fight now, Princess. Did you feel helpless during Sora's first journey? I wonder…"

Kairi tried another charge, her Keyblade aimed at his chest but that attack was deflected and she was pushed to the ground. "Is it because you feel responsible for what happened as a result of you being a Princess of Heart? Or maybe, there is a need for bloodshed." The Knight rushed at her, pushing her back with thrusts and Kairi barely deflecting them. "The first time I met you, I knew that you would be affected by the events of your journey. I knew that you would be conflicted by whether to embrace light or darkness and so you deny yourself both. I wonder if you even realize it yourself."

Kairi rolled out of the way and stood ready to take on any attack. "You amuse me, Princess. You have no idea how either if them feels. You are so selfish." Kairi charged at him with a battle cry but the Knight amazingly caught her blade with a gloved hand.

She gasped in surprise. "How did you do that?" She asked

"I told you that if your will to fight is strong, so will your sword. Therefore…" He left that open to interpretation.

* * *

Sora and Riku banged on the barrier, trying to help Kairi but finding it futile.

Sora broke down; tears were welling up in his eyes. "I have to help her, Riku."

Riku looked at him, wondering whether this was a wish to help a friend or to help a lover. "Is she that precious to you?" The silver-haired teen asked, afraid of the answer.

"Of course she is, Riku." Sora answered, causing Riku to frown. "But if it were you in there, the answer would be the same. You are precious to me as well."

Riku unconsciously smiled. "I feel the same way about the two of you." He told Sora. Sora looked at him, blue-eyes shimmering with something other than tears. Riku wiped away Sora's tears. "We'll save her. This I promise." With that, he summoned his Keyblade and attacked the barrier. Sora followed suit, his heart lighter.

* * *

Kairi gasped heavily after being thrown by the Knight Errant. She was tired. She had never fought before and it was showing. "I'll beat you." She told the Knight.

The Knight Errant chuckled. "Is that so? You look exhausted. Poor thing!" Then he thrust his Keyblade at her. "I will absolutely not let up on you."

Kairi jumped back to avoid the attack. Crouching, she propelled forward to strike the Knight with her Keyblade. Yelling, she believed that she caught the Knight Errant off guard when he jumped over her in a single bound. The Princess gasped, not expecting that. She turned around just to be pushed to the ground. She fell on the beach face first, sand getting in her mouth.

It was seeing Kairi being pushed around like a dog that Sora felt a pulse flowing through him. Anger and love mixed together and he could feel it coursing through his body. Riku noticed that and gasped.

Kairi could feel something emanating in Sora's direction. It was power. Even the Knight Errant turned around to see what would happen.

Sora held his Keyblade in the air as light shone around him. With a single strike, Sora brought his Keyblade down upon the barrier, shattering it. Riku took this opening to charge the Knight Errant. With his Keyblade, Way to the Dawn, in hand, Riku went after the Knight.

* * *

Kairi could feel herself being pulled akin to being caught in a vortex. It was strange. Time itself seemed to be stopping. Nothing moved. It was strange. It was during that that he saw her again, the blonde girl.

"Is this what you want, Kairi?" The blonde girl asked. "Do you want others to fight for you?"

Kairi looked away and thought for a moment. "Is that a bad thing?"

"Not really. However, there are times where you have to take it upon yourself and fight for what you believe is the right path. If you allow Sora or Riku to fight for you all the time, no matter how you feel about either of them, you will never understand them. Only a warrior can understand a warrior."

Kairi's eyes shone with resolve. "I'll finish this." She told her.

"If you ever feel like you've lost your resolve, your conviction, please call on me and I will help you." The blonde girl told her. "I, Namine, will give you everything that I can to help you conquer any enemy."

For the first time since last night when she saw her, she could hear Namine's name. Kairi was glad. "Thank you, Namine."

The blonde girl smiled. "So you can hear my name. I'm glad."

* * *

With that, time seemed to return to normal. Kairi saw Riku still running towards the Knight Errant, poised for attack. She called out to the silver-haired teen. "Riku, stop please."

Riku stopped on the dime. He turned towards Kairi. "Kairi…" he started. But the red-haired shook her head.

"I have to finish what I start, Riku. I have to fight." Riku looked into Kairi's green eyes and saw that she was serious. Although it hurt his heart to let Kairi fight, if it would make her happy, then he would give in to this request.

Sora walked up to Kairi, stunned by her sudden resolve. "But we can protect you, Kairi. You aren't a burden."

Kairi smiled at Sora, causing him to blush a bit. "I know, Sora. But I want to protect you guys too." Sora realized this need and nodded, allowing her to challenge the Knight Errant again.

She turned towards the Knight Errant. "I'm ready again."

While all of the events were transpiring, the Knight Errant felt a Pulse from Kairi. It was similar to when Sora broke his barrier. It seems as if the Princess was tapping into her power. "If you say so."

Kairi pointed her Keyblade at the Knight. "You asked me before what the name of my Keyblade was, right? It's Namine."

The Knight appeared to be nodding, at least that's what she could tell from the hood's movement. "I see. So you can communicate with her. Glad to hear it."

Kairi charged at the Knight and their weapons collided, the sound of metal banging against metal echoed through the beach. She swung her Sword at the Knight and he dodged. Her next attack was a lunge but the Knight pivoted and dodged that attack. He jumped back and the Princess attacked again. But this time, the man with the Keyblade swung his weapon upwards, the reverberations of such an attack pushed Kairi backwards, trying to regain her footing.

The Knight Errant pointed his Keyblade at Kairi. "How interesting!" He told her. "One conversation with Namine and your resolve is stronger. Well then, come and attack me." He taunted.

Kairi charged the Knight Errant but her attack was deflected and she stumbled a bit behind the Knight. "Your attack was full of hidden feelings." The Knight told her.

Kairi tried another lunge but it was deflected in the same manner. This time, she felt a hand on her back push her. She stumbled a bit and fell on the beach. "How painful these feelings must be for you."

As Kairi was getting up, she saw the Knight Errant lunge at her with his Keyblade. She brought her Sword to defend herself. His first attack, which was aimed for her head, was deflected and she was pushed back some. His second attack, which was aimed at her left shoulder, was repelled in the same fashion. His third attack, which was aimed at her right shoulder, caused her to block the attack in an awkward manner which left her open to his final lunge at her head.

"Kairi" Both Sora and Riku shouted as the Keyblade came dangerously close to impaling her.

Kairi flinched, closed her eyes and wheeled backwards. When she opened one of her eyes to peek, she saw the tip of the Knight's Errant's Keyblade pointed right at her eye. The control that he had in stopping right before it gouged out her eye was amazing. Taking a deep breath, she opened both of her eyes.

"No more hesitation, Princess." The Knight Errant told her.

He pulled his weapon back and thrust. Kairi saw this and moved to the left and charged at him. However, she did not see the Knight's leg coming towards her. His leg caught her right arm, the arm with the sword, and led it down and away from him. Kairi was shocked as she was left with an opening. The Knight grabbed her left shoulder and turned her around to face him. He charged and launched attack after attack while Kairi held up a meager and pathetic attempt to defend herself.

Kairi saw that she was being pushed towards the sea. Realizing that this would probably be bad for her, she jumped back and charged again, watching the Knight do the exact same thing. She barely had enough time to turn around when the redhead noticed the glint of a Keyblade attack her. It gently cut across her wrists, causing minimal bleeding. She brought the Keyblade up to defend herself when she felt the weapons collide with each other, the force of which pushed her back onto the sand.

Kairi was breathing hard. She ignored the bleeding and got up again. She could hear the Knight Errant snort in disgust.

"Princesses don't fight; they are fought for." He told her. "Princesses don't protect; they are protected. Stay a princess and have your future shaped for you or become a warrior, and with your blood-stained blade, create your our future."

Resolve shone in the Princess's eyes as she charged the Knight. Power began to spring from the redhead, ready to strike. "It's one or the other, Princess." The Knight Errant told her as he charged her as well.

Sora and Riku held their breath as the fight drew to a close. They prayed that she would be able to overcome the Knight.

There was a clank and a flash of light. When that passed, Kairi felt herself rolling on the beach violently. Her breath came in ragged and harsh. She looked at the Knight and saw that the right arm of his jacket was cut. The Princess wondered if she did that because she didn't remember doing that.

The Knight saw that the right arm of his jacket was cut. He examined the cut with a gloved hand. As his fingers probed the cut, they came out with a smattering of blood. She had cut him.

"Very good. The sacrifice is complete." The Knight Errant declared. "You can now be acknowledged as a warrior, Kairi. However, do not be cocky. Though you are able to cut me now, the road you have chosen will be filled with battles that you must fight. Continue to train and protect that which you deem precious. The Soul Sword, Namine, is yours."

He walked towards Sora and Riku. "Sora, I'm surprised that you were able to break my barrier. It seems as though the clothes I have given you are already starting to help." He put a hand on the brunet and watched as Sora and his blue eyes didn't move. "Get stronger, Sora."

He sauntered away and Riku turned to watch him go. He thought he heard something from him that sounded like '_I will see you tonight'_. It was like an ominous warning. However, there were more important things on his mind, like checking on Kairi. He turned towards Sora. "We need to check on her."

With that, the two boys ran towards Kairi. Kairi, however, was looking at her Soul Sword and contemplating.

"Kairi, are you alright?" Riku asked. Sora saw that there was blood on Kairi's hand, originating from her wrists.

"I'm fine." Kairi told them. "Just exhausted. It was my first fight." When she said that, she did something weird. She started laughing. The laughter was unexpected, but welcomed because it allowed all the tension to seep out of her body.

"We need to bandage your wrists, Kairi." Sora told her. She nodded but could not get up as her legs felt like jelly. The two boys realized this and picked her up and supported her as they moved her towards the shack.

"Kairi" Sora asked. "Why do you want to fight?"

"I just want to understand you guys a bit more." She said honestly. "This Keyblade thing just put a rift between us. I didn't like it."

"Kairi, you don't have to fight if you don't want to." Riku told her. "I'm sure that I speak for the both of us when I say that we don't mind protecting you."

"But I want to protect you two as well." Tears started to form but she didn't allow them to fall down her checks. She was a warrior now. Tears are not meant for warriors. "I want to protect what is precious to me, the two most precious things to me." She didn't realize what she said until the echoes of the conversation came back to her. It was then when she realized what Namine meant by '_You already know what choice you are going to make_'. Sora and Riku caught that smiled. Riku smiled because he believed he was getting closer to that which he wanted. Sora smiled because it looked like she found a purpose.

As she was being carried over to the shack, she knew what she wanted from herself and from her Soul Sword, Namine. She wanted to protect this feeling.

* * *

Thus ends chapter 8. Chapter 9 will have a lemon, hot threesome action.

There are a bunch of things that I have edited in the previous chapters. I added a bit prose to each chapter and made some minor changes. Enjoy and please leave a review. That will make me happy.


	9. Tension Rising

Chapter 8: Tension Rising

This song is one of the boss battle songs from KH2. I like it. I like it a lot.

* * *

_The stronger the Light, the greater the Darkness. Don't fear the darkness. Take it and shape your destiny._

It was getting dark. The sun had run its daily course over the heavens and now it was the moon's turn to cross the sky. Riku was lying on the beach, staring at the sky. There were very little clouds passing by and it made it all the more peaceful. He had never noticed before how peaceful Destiny Islands was until he left. It was when that peace was broken that he started to realize how valuable and fragile peace was. He enjoyed it.

From his reclined position, he saw Sora teaching Kairi how to handle her sword. It seemed strange that the Knight Errant gave Kairi a weapon but stranger still was that she wanted to fight. Kairi was never known to be a fighter. In fact, she avoided confrontations completely. Her reason to fight was to protect him and Sora. But she knew that they could take care of themselves. There was another reason, he figured.

However, there was something else bothering him. It was the Knight Errant. He knew that he heard that guy say that he was going to see him tonight.

Riku took out Way to the Dawn from the ether. It was the Keyblade that he found in the Nexus. The Keyblade of Darkness and the Hero of Dark... it all sounded ominous, like he was evil. That's what bothered him. Darkness doesn't belong in the light. All of the stories that he read about the light taking on the darkness, the light was good and the darkness was evil. It was the same through all stories.

"Riku." A voice called out to him, ending his musing. It belonged to his beloved Kairi. "It's starting to get dark. We should head to the shack."

"In a minute." He told her

Kairi shrugged her shoulders, not knowing what thoughts were going through Riku's mind.

Riku watched her leave to head to the shack. He saw her for the beautiful woman that she was. It made his heart ache to know that he was part of the reason that she felt pain in the past, her and Sora.

He then turned to Sora, who was wiping the sweat off his brow. When Sora noticed, he smiled a goofy smile. It made Riku's heart flutter. This boy was completely different than Kairi but he loved him just the same. They were two different people that Riku loved... and yet, there was a rift between them. It was because Riku was contaminated with darkness.

It was then that he felt it, a pulse. It was a dark pulse but not one with which he was familiar. It was strange. He felt drawn to it. Then he remembered the Knight Errant's words. I will see you tonight. Was this what the robed man was talking about, this pulse?

He decided to investigate. As Riku was walking towards the presence, he heard Sora's voice.

"Where are you going, Riku?" Sora asked.

"I'm just going to check something out quickly." Riku smiled. He didn't want to worry Sora and, by extension, Kairi. But something was just weird about this pulse. Then Riku realized that Sora didn't say anything about the pulse. Perhaps he was the only one feeling it.

"Do you want me and Kairi to come with you?:

"That's okay. It won't take long." Riku waved at Sora and left him there.

Sora didn't want to crowd Riku. Apparently, he had something on his mind. So he let Riku be, although it did weigh heavily in his heart. Sora watched the retreating form of Riku disappear into the sunset with a forlorn look on his face. The best thing he could do is just be there for him.

* * *

Riku tried to find where the pulse was coming from by closing his eyes and removing all distraction. Then he felt it. It was like a radio signal with waves coming at him from the Mayor's Island. With that, he took a boat and left the Children's Island.

The Mayor's Island, as the name suggests, is where the mayor worked and handled administrative duties and also where he lived. The current mayor was also Kairi's adoptive father who took her in seven years ago when she mysteriously showed up in Destiny Island. He was okay... for an adult. For someone so young, Riku had never had very good experiences with adults... his father for instance. The silver haired boy shook his head. No use thinking about that man.

When Riku saw her for the first time, he was eight and Sora was seven. He thought she was kind of weird. On an island country where everyone knew everyone, the introduction threw everyone for a loop. They had never been in contact with other countries before Kairi came to the island. And so, it was strange to see her. Riku supposed that she was the inspiration from which he got the idea to travel to other lands. To him, Kairi had to come from somewhere in this world. So if he and Sora built a boat that could withstand sea travels, then they could find Kairi's original home. At least that was the plan at first.

As for Kairi herself, she integrated seamlessly with the other children, as if she were always there in the first place. Riku and Sora started to accept Kairi as one of them and soon after, Riku fell in love with her. It was about the same time that he also fell in love with Sora as well.

Before Riku could contemplate anymore, he arrived at the Mayor's island.

There were two buildings on the Mayor's Island. There was the office and his house. The pulse seemed to be coming from the office. Riku hesitated at first. So, as a precaution, he drew Way to the Dawn from the ether to protect himself. Opening the door slowly, Riku investigated the main hallway. The pulse was straight ahead. He moved slowly, so as to ascertain the situation.

In front of him was another door. This was the door into the Mayor's office. He opened it slowly and looked inside. There was an unadorned desk with papers on it in front of him. On the other side of the desk was a swivel chair that was turned the other way. Around him were some file cabinet which seemed to hold important stuff.

All of a sudden, the chair turned around. Riku readied his Keyblade. It was him, the Knight Errant, sitting in the chair. The hood was drawn over his face as per usual so it was hard to tell that it was the same person but there was the silver Keyblade in one of his hands. So it had to be him. He was the origin of the dark pulse.

"Welcome, Riku." The Knight Errant told him. "Your training begins now. I hope you are prepared."

With that, the Knight Errant leaped from chair and attacked Riku.

* * *

Sora loved the feeling of the sand on his feet and in between his toes, especially the sand from Destiny Island. It felt cool and weird at the same time. It was a great feeling. It was just the kind of thing to cheer him up after what happened with Riku.

Sora felt as if he was letting a friend down. It wasn't as if Riku told him anything of what he was feeling but still...

Perhaps he could convince Kairi to help look for Riku. After all, it would be better if the two of them could help Riku with whatever he was feeling.

That was when Sora found a conundrum. How did he feel about Riku and Kairi now that they were both back in his life? He knew that he liked them like friends and it was starting to border on something romantic but did they like him like that as well? When Kairi was fighting the Knight Errant for the right draw her Soul Sword, he tried his best to break down the barrier that the Knight Errant had created to prevent outside influence. At first, nothing worked but he got worried about Kairi's safety, he found the strength within to destroy the barrier. It was his feelings for Kairi and Riku's encouragement that helped him get through the barrier. Even though Kairi wanted to stand on her own two feet and didn't want either boy to help her....

Sora was starting to get depressed. Sora had to be the cheerful one. It is part of his personality. If he wasn't cheerful, Riku and Kairi won't be either.

As he was making his way to the shack, he looked to the shack, he noticed that night fell very quickly. He knew that there were still some moments of daylight left when Riku wanted to be alone, so there was no reason that it got dark this soon. Something was causing this. Could it be the Heartless?

Sora ran towards the shack to get to Kairi while feeling a pain in his heart. Riku wasn't here. Did he know about this? Was he fighting somewhere? Was he hurt? All of these questions burned inside the brunet. It consumed him. That was when he felt it, a strong pulse coming from inside him. It was the same pulse that he felt when he saw Kairi fighting the Knight Errant. It was warm, like the light of the sun, and gentle and it washed over him completely.

As Sora was nearing the shack, he saw Kairi come out of it with a worried look on her face. Her sword was still in her hands from the training that they did.

"Where's Riku?" She asked frantically.

"I don't know. All I know is that it started to get dark really quick and then I just felt that something wasn't right."

"It was the same with me." Kairi told the boy.

"We have to find him." Sora's eyes shined with determination. Kairi couldn't help but feel awestruck by this. Seeing the look in his eyes made Kairi's heart flutter and she knew that everything was going to be alright.

"We will. Everything is going to be alright."

With that, the two began the search for their friend.

* * *

Riku was breathing heavily, his Keyblade still drawn. The Knight Errant looked in his direction and there was an aura of amusement around him.

"How sad, Riku." The Knight clucked his tongue. Please tell me that this isn't the best you can do. Please tell me that you're holding back something."

Riku didn't respond.

"I see." The Knight sighed. "You are afraid."

"Who's afraid?" Riku yelled, angrily.

"You are, Riku. Otherwise you wouldn't hesitate in fighting me."

"I am not afraid." Riku shouted and emphasized that point by charging at the Knight Errant. However, he jumped out of the way gracefully.

"You have a wellspring of power in you, yet you do not use it. How strange."

Riku brandished his Keyblade at the Knight. "I do not need darkness to defeat you. I will use light."

It was in that moment that the Knight Errant laughed. The echo of this laughter reverberated through the Mayor's office. "You? Use Light? That's absurd."

Riku growled. "I'll use the light in my heart to defeat your darkness."

The Knight continued laughing. "Hahahahaha. You don't have light in your heart. You only have darkness."

"Don't mock me." With that, he made another charge but this time, the Knight Errant caught Way to the Dawn with his gloved hand. Riku was shocked but that shock lasted only a moment because the Knight Errant lifted Riku using Way to the Dawn and threw him. Riku hit one of the walls, causing the office to shake a bit.

"You can't beat me with light that you don't have, Riku." The Knight Errant told him.

"I will. I will stop your darkness."

The Knight shook his head. "You have no idea, do you?"

With that, the Knight Errant let go of his Keyblade and it disappeared into the ether. He clasped his hands together. When he moved them apart, a glowing rectangular object appeared in his hands.

"This is the power of the light that you desire so much, Riku."

Riku could only gasp.

**BRILLIANT LANCE**

The Knight Errant grabbed the lance and threw it at Riku, who was hit and thrown up against the wall. Riku cried out in pain.

* * *

Sora and Kairi, as they were trying to find Riku, felt a pain in their chest. It was their heart. Their hearts was in pain.

"Riku." Sora muttered through gritted teeth.

"I'm going to find you, Riku." Kairi whispered.

Sora and Kairi looked at each other and recognized the feelings that each other had. They both loved Riku.

"Since when?" Sora asked Kairi.

"I don't remember. I was waiting for you two to return and then Selphie asked me which of you did I like more. I couldn't come up with an answer." Kairi smiled bitterly. "I still can't. I love you and Riku equally. I'm such an idiot." The last part she spat out as if it hurt her tongue.

Sora put a comforting hand on Kairi's shoulder. "I love you too... and Riku. So let's find him and tell him together."

Kairi smiled at Sora and kissed his cheek. "Yeah, let's go."

* * *

Riku groaned. He was hit with Light. It hurt. "Why did it hurt?" Riku muttered to himself.

"It's because you are filled with darkness, Riku." The Knight Errant answered him. "Haven't you figured it out yet? You will never be able to use the Light like I can. Accept that."

"I refuse to accept that." Riku stated adamantly.

"And why is that?"

"Because I no longer belong to the darkness."

"Don't be foolish, Riku. You were filled with darkness the day you were born. You will never be like Sora."

"I can change." Tears were threatening to spill down Riku's face but he held them in check. "That's my reason to fight. I fight so I can look Sora and Kairi in the eyes and be forgiven for what I have done... even if they never love me like I love them."

"You will never be a being of light." The Knight Errant said in a low voice.

_Eternal light, ever true and undefiled, grant this wanton sinner before me the majesty of thy judgment._

**Way of Destruction # 22: Ray**

A ball of light formed next to Riku. In an instant, beams of light shot out of the ball, hitting Riku, causing damage.

Riku fell in pain and coughed up some blood. "How..."

"How what, Riku?" The Knight asked.

"How can you use Light for evil?"

"Evil?"

"I'm trying to change. I thought it was the way of the Light to save those who want to be saved."

"Evil and good are just codifications used by people to relate their actions against other people." The Knight Errant told him. "If you think that an action is evil, there is another person who will tell you that same action is good."

The Knight walked towards him and grabbed Riku by the jaw. "Aren't I doing what a being of light should be doing, vanquishing the darkness? Sora is a being of Light. So, by extension, would Sora be doing a good thing in killing you?"

Riku was falling into despair. By his own logic, he was failing. If he was filled with darkness, shouldn't he indeed be killed?

"NO." Riku shouted.

When Riku shouted, the Knight Errant felt a pulse coming from the silver haired teen.

"Even if I am filled with darkness, I'll use the same darkness to protect people. Good or evil, light or darkness, it doesn't matter anymore. As long as the people I love are safe, I'll use all that I have to keep it that way."

Riku aimed his free hand at the Knight Errant. Darkness began to swirl around the palm.

**EBONY BLAST**

The Knight Errant copied what Riku did.

**EBONY BLAST**

The two Ebony Blast collided with each other and dissipated into ether.

Riku was surprised that the Knight Errant used darkness too. He imagined that the Knight would use light to counter him.

"Stage one clear." The Knight Errant told him. "Congratulations, Riku."

Now Riku was confused. "I don't get it."

"I have a special training for you that has nothing to do with how Kairi was trained." The Knight responded. "You see, Kairi, in order for her to fight, needed a reason to fight. She found that reason. She wants to stand on her own two feet and be a warrior like you guys. You, on the other hand, are different. You have your reason but you haven't chosen to fight."

"I've chosen when I got the Keyblade from the dark world." Riku shouted.

"No, you haven't. You haven't chosen to fight. You were trying to step away from the thing that will give you power, the darkness. You feared the darkness. Therefore, you moved further and further away from it. The further you moved from the darkness, the further moved away from the choice that you made when you received the Keyblade."

"But isn't darkness evil?" Riku asked, hoping for a favorable answer.

"Light and darkness are not synonymous with good and evil. Light and darkness are two halves of a whole. There have been heroes who have used darkness to save the world and villains who have used light to destroy it. They are not exclusive to one side or the other. Darkness cannot exist without the light for if there is no light, there is no darkness, just emptiness. The stronger the light is, the greater the darkness. Sora is your light. As he gets stronger, if you continue to choose and reaffirm that choice, so will you."

"And what about Kairi?" Riku asked.

"Kairi is your anchor to keep you from slipping into the recesses of oblivion. She will keep you grounded as you and Sora grow stronger."

Riku understood a little of what the Knight was saying. "Why didn't you tell me that this was training?"

"If I did, you wouldn't have tried your best."

Riku accepted that answer.

"One last question. How are you able to use light and darkness?" Riku was curious. If light and darkness are both symbiotic, how is it that the Knight was able

"It's just part of who I am." The Knight told him. It didn't leave Riku satisfied with that answer. "However Riku, this is just stage one, face the darkness. Now comes stage two. But before that..."

The Knight Errant directed his open palms towards Riku. Green swirls gathered around the palms.

**RESTORATION**

All of Riku's wounds closed up almost instantaneously. He also didn't feel exhausted as he was before. It was almost as if it were...

"Healing magic." The Knight Errant finished Riku's thought. "You have two more stages to complete. It wouldn't do if you weren't giving it your all."

Riku was ready. "What's stage two?"

The Knight Errant looked his way. Riku couldn't tell because of the hood obscuring his face, but he could feel like the Knight was looking into his eyes. "Stage two is... to face yourself."

"Face myself?" Riku asked.

The Knight Errant didn't give an answer. However, he pointed his Keyblade at Riku and turned it as one would turning a key.

"Darkness that feeds off of the Seeker of Darkness, reveal yourself to me and my darkness." The Knight Errant commanded.

Riku felt his mouth open wide as darkness spewed from it. The darkness started to take shape until it took the form of something he knew.

"That's...."

* * *

Sora and Kairi were having a tough time finding Riku. They had no idea where he would go. And the more time that passed, the more worried they became until finally...

"Where else could Riku be?" Kairi shouted. "We checked the entire Children's Island."

"Do you think that he is on another island?" Sora asked

"But where would he go?"

"Let's check the residential island first. Then we can work our way through the other islands."

"Sora, I'm worried." Kairi told him her fears. "I feel like he's in pain."

Sora looked away, unable to face Kairi. "We'll find him. You have to believe that. I mean, we got him back from Kingdom Hearts. We can do it again."

Hearing Sora say that renewed her confidence. "You're right, Sora. We can do it."

The two made a plan to search all of the islands until Riku was found.

* * *

Riku couldn't believe it. It had it to be an illusion. Such a thing just didn't seem possible. There, before his eyes, was another him, another Riku. The other him had the same facial features but that's where the similarities ended. From the head down, it looked like how he looked when Ansem had infected him. The dark robes and Heartless emblem on his chest made Riku sick to his stomach. Was this how he looked like to Sora and Kairi? How disgusting. The other him had his eyes closed, as if waiting for something.

"This is what I mean when I say you will face yourself." The Knight Errant told him. "In order for you to grow stronger, you must cast off the shackles which bind you. Your fears of the darkness bind you and you bind yourself with those fears. Therefore, in order to free yourself from you, you must defeat yourself. Does that make sense?"

The other Riku opened its eyes and snorted. "Who the hell are you?" it asked.

The Knight Errant turned to the other Riku. "You need not know, creature. If all goes according to plan, you will no longer exist."

The creature laughed. "You gonna kill me? Don't make me laugh."

The other Riku materialized Soul Eater and tried to attack the Knight Errant. As the creature swung his weapon, the Knight Errant caught the blade with a gloved hand, stopping it effectively. The creature gasped.

The Knight Errant put his other hand on the other Riku's cheek and looked into the black soulless eyes. "You think you have a chance against me? Don't make me laugh." With that, the Knight released the blade. "Besides, I am not going to fight you. Riku is."

The other Riku looked around and saw a teenager with the same facial features as it did. How amusing. "So this is the real me? If I kill him, then I become Riku."

Riku gritted his teeth. "You? Kill me? I won't let you."

The other Riku cackled. "This is even better." With that, the creature charged Riku.

Since the two Rikus were fighting, the Knight Errant decided to leave them to it. He left the two to their fight.

* * *

Sora and Kairi were about to board a boat when they felt a sudden wind. Before they realized it, they saw a cloaked figure standing in front of the boat that they were about to use.

"Good evening, Sora, Kairi." The Knight Errant greeted. "How are you this evening?"

There was something with the way that the Knight Errant spoke that made Sora and Kairi believe that he was being facetious.

"We are looking for Riku." Kairi told the Knight Errant. "Do you know where he is?"

"You mean you can't find him?" The Knight responded. "You can't feel his Pulse?"

"His Pulse?" Sora asked "What is that?"

"It is the energy that surrounds people. All you need to do is to close your eyes and view, with your mind's eye, the person you wish to find. If you are successful, you will be able to find Riku."

"But..." Kairi began but was cut off by the Knight.

The Knight Errant looked at Kairi. "You are still carrying out your Soul Sword. It seems as though I forgot to teach you how to return your Soul Sword where it belongs."

Kairi regarded the Knight Errant with disdain. He was stalling her and Sora from finding Riku. "But what if I need my sword?"

"I've taught you how to call upon the Sword. The Soul Sword is strongest when your will to fight is great. However, when the Sword is idle, it becomes fragile. Should this happen and your Soul Sword is shattered, well, let me just say that you don't want that to happen. So pay attention."

The Knight Errant pulled his Keyblade from the Ether. He turned the tip of the Keyblade towards his heart. "Please do what I am I doing, Kairi."

Kairi did as she was told.

_Oh Rose of the Noble Heart_

_The small rose within me_

_Return to your scabbard_

_To slumber once more_

As the Knight Errant chanted the words, his Keyblade started to sink into his body, as if by magic. When he finished chanting, the Keyblade was gone.

"Please repeat what I said." The Knight Errant asked.

Kairi did she was asked, although a bit reluctantly. When the chant was completed, Namine, Kairi's Soul Sword, had returned to its original place in Kairi's heart.

"Now," The Knight Errant continued as if he was interrupted. "Close your eyes and think of Riku. Think of how he looks, how he sounds, how he feels. If you can accurately draw a picture of what he looks like in your mind's eye, you'll be able to find him."

Sora and Kairi did what they were asked. They would have done most anything to find Riku. Their hearts were hurting. It was as if they could feel his pain. Something was going down with Riku and they felt as though they had to get to him quickly.

Suddenly, they felt a strong pulse. It was a dark pulse but nonetheless a soothing one. It was scratchy, as if there was something trying to interfere with that pulse. The other pulse was dark like the first one, but it was rough, like sandpaper. It felt angry and joyful at the same time.

"Riku's in trouble." Sora and Kairi said at the same time. Now knowing at least the direction where Riku was, they proceeded in that direction.

The Knight Errant stayed behind, watching the two of them. "They were able to find a direction and it wasn't even ten minutes since I told them how to find Riku. Such fascinating growth rate. I'm pretty sure that they can do it."

* * *

Meanwhile, Riku was fighting the other Riku. Neither of them were making any headway. The two of them were evenly matched.

"Hahaha. Isn't this fun, Riku?" The creature laughed. "The blood, the pain, isn't it amazing?"

Riku didn't respond.

"What? No witty comment?" The creature taunted. "I'm hurt."

The other Riku opened his palm towards Riku.

**EBONY BLAST**

Riku dodged it easily. As he was watching the creature that looked like him, he was trying to think of a way to defeat it using darkness.

"I need to assume that he has all of the powers that I do." He thought. "But I don't even know what powers I have. How am I suppose to beat him? There has to be some sort of trick."

It was then that his thoughts drifted his fight with Sora. When they fought the first time in Hollow Bastion, Riku was still himself. When they fought the second time, he was infected by Ansem's darkness. If what the Knight Errant said was true, if Darkness isn't evil, then using that technique....

Holding his Keyblade up and ready to attack, Riku summoned darkness to well up inside him. As he did this, the power caused him to levitate. He saw the target before him. The other Riku regarded Riku curiously, as if wondering what the real one was going to do.

**DARK AURA**

In an instant, Riku attacked the creature with powerful and fast attacks. The creature never stood a chance. As Riku levitated close to the creature, he released the darkness from his body. The force of the darkness being expelled from Riku's body manifested in powerful explosions around him, consuming the creature in dark energy. The other Riku screamed in agony until there was nothing left.

Riku gasped for air. The effort of using that attack exhausted. As he was catching his breath, he heard clapping. Scanning the room, he saw that person in the black robes. It was him, the Knight Errant.

"You did well. Congratulations." The Knight told him. Riku detected a bit of mirth in his voice.

"Save it." Riku responded tersely.

"One more task and you will grow stronger."

"What is it?"

"The first task, facing your fears, deals with the choice of accepting the Darkness. By accepting the Darkness, you make the choice of using it as you will. In your case, you use your darkness to protect the ones you deem precious. The second task, facing yourself, deals what you hate about your darkness. That form was not used on accident. That form was used to show you what you became when you used darkness for evil. That creature is the manifestation of what you hated about yourself. By destroying that, you wipe the slate clean and allow yourself to remake yourself as you see fit."

"So what is the third task?" Riku was getting impatient. He was keeping Sora and Kairi waiting for him. More than likely, the two were worried about him. In a way, he hoped that they were worried. It would mean that they really cared about him. And if that were the case...

"The final task ... is to face the person you hate the most." The Knight Errant told him

"The person I hate the most?" Riku echoed.

"That's right. Your fears of the darkness bound you and you bound yourself with those fears." The Knight Errant explained. "But the person you hate the most is the one who provided you with the ties with which you bound yourself. In other words. This person is the person which made you hate the darkness."

"In other words, Ansem." Riku supplied.

"Do you really hate him, Riku?" The Knight Errant asked.

"Excuse me?" The silver-haired man growled. "That man fooled me. He made me take his hand and destroy Destiny Island. He infected me, like a disease. He sent me to that bitch Maleficent and made me attack Sora and kidnap Kairi." Tears started streaming down his face. "I HATE THAT BASTARD."

The Knight Errant sighed. "Let me just say this and we'll begin. In order to really hate a person, that person must be in your heart. You must first have some sort of positive feelings for that person. Betrayal by this person would hurt more than anything. This is what it means to truly hate a person."

The Knight Errant cast his healing spell.

**RESTORATION**

With a wave of his hands, Riku was healed by the Knight Errant.

"Prepare yourself, Riku."

The Knight Errant pointed his Keyblade at Riku. "Darkness that binds Riku's darkness, feed off of my darkness and take shape as the one that Riku hates the most."

Riku felt his heart burning, as if there was something inside him that wanted to be free. Dark swirls started to hover near Riku's heart. To Riku, it felt familiar, as though he had known this power for a long time. The darkness moved in front of him and started to take shape.

It was him. It was the person who he hated the most. It was ... his father.

His father looked the same as he did a year ago. The angular face, the green eyes filled with hate, the jet black hair that he didn't inherit and the glasses that covered his eyes and hovered on the bridge of his nose, it was his father.

_So this is what the Knight Errant meant when he said that the person I hate is the person who had to be in my heart_, Riku thought. Riku hated his father for what he said about Sora. He called him a childish fag. And when someone caught the three of them that night sleeping together on the beach, his father called him a pervert.

No. Riku didn't hate anyone more than the man that gave him life. He hated his father.

His father opened his eyes and looked at him. "Well, well, if it isn't the pervert." He smirked. "Come, give your old man a hug."

Riku clenched his Keyblade so hard that he started to draw blood. That was the effect of this man in front of him

"Now Riku," The Knight Errant told him. "The final test begins. You must face the man you hate the most. Should you be able to kill him, you will gain the strength to protect whatever you deem precious. Please realize that power, in and of itself, isn't evil. Neither is darkness. What you decide to do with the power will determine whether or not it is evil."

With that, the Knight Errant left Riku to fight his father.

Riku's father smiled wickedly. "What's wrong, son? You don't look happy to see me."

"You..." was all Riku could ground out before launching his attack.

Riku's father dodged, but not without sustaining a slight cut on his temple. He wiped the blood off of his face and licked it. "Why do you attack your dear father, Riku?" His father chided him in a mocking voice. "You are being so bad. I think it's time for a spanking."

Riku's father started to gain demonic features. His hands became claws and his legs became talons. It was a truly horrifying sight but Riku was not afraid. Riku launched another attack.

* * *

Sora and Kairi finally found where the Pulse originated. It was the Mayor's Island. The two of them were on a speedboat, trying to make it to Riku when they felt a terrifying Pulse. It was in the direction of the island. It wasn't Riku that was the source of the Pulse. No, it was something else.

It took them two minutes to reach the Mayor's Island. When they did, they were greeted by the site of the Knight Errant. However, he wasn't looking at them. He was looking at the Mayor's office.

When they jumped off the board, the Mayor's office exploded, like it was wired with TNT or something. The whole building was demolished. The only two things that were still moving were Riku and some sort of demon. The demon looked familiar to Sora and Kairi. In fact, it looked somewhat similiar to Riku.

"That's his father." The Knight Errant supplied. "The one that Riku hates the most is his father. And so, in order to gain power, he must take on and destroy his father."

Kairi was perplexed. "I don't get it. I mean, sure, his father was a hardass but why would Riku hate his father so much that he would want to kill him?"

"Riku never told you but his father disapproved of his relationship with the two of you, particularly with Sora." The Knight Errant told the girl.

Sora looked down in shame. "Why me?"

"Riku's father hates you because he believed that you were trying to turn Riku gay." The Knight Errant snorted lightly at the idea. "He was trying to make his son love Kairi and hate you. To that end, he tried to play matchmaker for his son. However, loving Kairi wasn't enough for Riku. He loved you too, Sora."

"Love?" Kairi asked softly. The word was so soft that it almost wasn't spoken. "Riku loves us."

"Riku loves the two of you." The Knight told them. "This isn't the kind of friendship love or even familiar love, the love between family members. This is eros, romantic love. He loves the two of you, Sora and Kairi."

The two of them were shocked by the Knight Errant telling them this. It seems as though their hopes were realized.

The Knight Errant continued. "The week before Destiny Island was destroyed, the three of you were camping out on the Island that you've played on for years. In that moment, Riku tried to make you two love him and each other like he loved you. It sort of worked. However, someone reported the three of you to Riku's father and he threw Riku out of his house. His father couldn't stand the fact that his son loved Sora and Kairi."

Sora looked away in pain. He couldn't believe that Riku was thrown out of his house because of them. "Why didn't he..."

"Because he didn't want you to worry." The Knight Errant told him. "You know Riku better than anyone. However, it was that hate for his father that made him susceptible to the temptation of _that person_."

"Ansem." Sora completed the Knight's thought.

"That person tempted him into using the powers of darkness. Riku's powers were just starting to manifest, just like yours, Sora. However, that person tainted Riku's darkness with his own."

"Riku's darkness?" Kairi asked. "Are you saying..."

"Riku and Sora are two halves of a coin, darkness and light. They are complementary and antagonistic. Neither can exist without the other. And the Princess of Heart makes that possible."

Sora and Kairi gasped. What the Knight Errant said solidified the feeling that they've had all along.

"Riku isn't evil?" Sora asked, more to himself than to get an answer.

"Do you believe that he is evil?" The Knight asked.

Their thoughts ended when Riku cried out in pain. Sora, on instinct, was about to run out to help Riku when he saw a glint of metal blocking his path. It seems as though the Knight Errant drew his Keyblade.

"Don't interfere, Sora." The Knight commanded.

"But Riku..."

"Don't interfere." He grounded.

The Knight Errant sighed. "This is Riku's fight. In order for him to use the darkness and grow stronger. He must believe that he can do it on his own. If you help him, he will never gain the courage to do it. He will unconsciously believe that he has to be helped. That will destroy his warrior's pride for all eternity."

"But Riku..." Sora repeated, more downcast than before.

"If you really want to do something, believe in Riku."

* * *

Riku fell to his knees. He couldn't believe that his father was this strong in his lifetime. How the hell was he overpowering him?

The demon who took the shape of his father laughed. "What's wrong, son? Are you so surprised I am this strong?"

"Where is your power coming from?" Riku asked.

"You don't need to know. All you need to know is that I brought you into this world and, quite fittingly, I will take you out of it."

Riku's father opened his mouth. A red energy collected at the base of this throat. The demon spit it out.

**DEMON LANCE**

The lance came hurtling towards Riku.

Riku refused to die here. He was going to defeat his father and move on from there. He wanted forgiveness from Sora and Kairi, but most of all, he wanted forgiveness from himself. Therefore, he was going to use all that he had to defeat his father.

Riku let go of Way to the Dawn and it disappeared into ether. Quickly, he clasped his hands and released. A purple energy formed and took the shape of a lance.

**SHADOW METEOR**

Riku threw the lance. It collided with the Demon Lance that his father threw and obliterated it and continued moving until it pierced his father through the heart. Riku's father could only gasp as the killing blow was landed.

"You, take me out of this world?" Riku spat. "Don't you know that it is the children who bury the parents?" Riku averted his eyes. "Rest in peace, father."

Riku's father gasped in pain as he disintegrated and left this world.

Riku smiled. His father, along with his prejudices, were gone. The silver-haired teen was happy in a way. He felt no remorse killing his father.

After expending all that energy fighting, Riku collapsed on the sand and fell asleep. Sora and Kairi rushed to his side. The Knight Errant looked in amazement at Riku's progression.

"He used Shadow Meteor and Dark Aura, both mid-level darkness techniques. I'm surprised. Perhaps he IS the Hero of Dark."

He dug in his jacket and pulled out some long, thin white cloth and walked towards Riku. He gave the cloth to Kairi. "Put this wherever he has wounds. This magic bandage will heal them within a 24 hour period."

Kairi nodded. She was grateful. She took the bandage from the Knight.

"Your training is complete, Riku." The Knight told the unconscious Riku. "Remember the lessons that you have learned tonight. If you choose to fight and if you choose to wield the darkness, remember why you wield it. Power isn't evil. It isn't good. It's what you do with it that makes all the difference."

The Knight Errant turned to walk away when Sora called out to him.

"So, you were training Riku."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because he was afraid of the darkness."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Sora asked, a bit miffed that he wasn't told about this training.

"Because it was necessary to get Riku to stand on his own two feet, just like Kairi did this morning."

Sora looked at Riku then back at the Knight. "Are you going to train me?"

"You need no training at the moment. You are sufficiently strong."

The Knight Errant turned around and looked at Sora. "In fact," He told Sora. "This will be the last time you see me like this. The next time we meet, it will be face to face."

The Knight Errant called his Keyblade from the ether and, with it, opened a portal of darkness. "I have something else to do. So grow stronger, Sora. Protect everything with those two hands of yours."

With that, the Knight Errant stepped through the portal and disappeared.

Sora sighed and walked back to Riku. He saw that Kairi had bandaged him up well. The brunet smiled. He would protect Kairi and Riku with his hands. Surely, the other two felt that way as well. Tomorrow, he would tell them. He would tell them that he loved the two of them, truly and deeply loved them.

* * *

A Riku-centric chapter. Okay.

Yes, I promised a threesome but the chapter became way too long that I had to push it back. I promise, there will be a threesome in the next chapter. Scouts Honor.

Sparky out


	10. Passion

Chapter 9: Passion

This chapter was seven days later than what I wanted. Oooh. I'm bad. And very lazy. But finally, here's the ninth chapter of Dearly Beloved. Also, the chapter title, Passion, takes its name from the theme song to Kingdom Hearts II. If any title is appropriate for this chapter, it is this. This story is nearly 100 pages long. Damn

* * *

_Passion. It lies in all of us, sleeping, waiting. And though unwanted and unbidden, it will stir, open its jaws and howl. It speaks to us, guides us. Passion rules us all and we obey_.

Kairi and Sora were watching Riku sleep in the shack. The bandages, given to them by the Knight Errant, were wrapped around his shirtless body and glowed with a green light. He looked so peaceful as he slept. His face was free of worry, doubt or anything bad.

"He looks so peaceful." Kairi commented, brushing a strand of errant hair from his eyes.

Sora had to agree. He smiled. Seeing Riku's face brought him to reality. He was actually face to face with Riku.

Sora had spent his entire journey looking for Riku and Kairi. He had endured so much and sacrificed his naiveté for them. And yet, if faced with the same decision, he would do it again gladly.

_"So grow stronger, Sora. Protect everything with those two hands of yours."_

The words of the Knight Errant echoed in his head. Sora knew what he had to do. He had to grow stronger. He had to protect them.

Sora's musing were interrupted when Kairi shuffled to sleep next to Riku. He hadn't noticed how tired Kairi was. It was a very trying day for all of them. However, Sora couldn't sleep. He was uneasy. He was still tense about what was happening.

Slinking quietly away from Kairi and Riku, Sora left the shack to go to the beach. The sun had finished his course around the sky. The sound of the waves lapping against the sands were soothing but they didn't calm his restlessness. It was as if there was a power rumbling in him. He couldn't keep it in him any longer.

There was a Pulse swelling in him. It felt the same when he saw Kairi fighting the Knight Errant. Power rushed into him. It was as if his body was moving of its own accord.

He clapped his hands together and then pulled them apart. When he did, light started to collect between his hands. It took the shape of a giant spear. To Sora, it looked like when Riku used his Shadow Meteor.

He could hold it no longer. He took the spear of light in his hand.

**BRILLIANT LANCE**

Sora threw the lance in the direction of the ocean. The lance cut the water slightly, parting it on either side. However, it curved to the right from where he threw it. It disappeared from Sora's sight after a while.

The Hero of Light panted. He had never done something like that before. Of course he knew magic, but he was only adequate at it. He had never cast anything at the level of that power he just used.

Sora was content but exhausted. That attack took a lot out of him. However, he couldn't allow himself to sleep yet. He had to grow stronger. He needed to make the attack straighter.

This wish to grow stronger didn't come from nowhere. He remembered his battle with Juusan Kikan, Larnexe in particular. After his fight with her, he realized that his prowess in battle meant nothing against the likes of her. He had to grow stronger. He had to protect everything with his light. Never again will he allow himself to be weak.

Sora trained as best he could throughout the night.

* * *

Riku was the first to wake up in the morning. He felt very sore. The silver-haired teen noticed that he was wrapped up in bandages. For some strange reason, he could smell power coming off of it. It smelled like mint and green, if one could associate a color with a smell.

Riku tried getting up but found himself too sore to do so. So he decided to lie still. It was then that he noticed two other bodies in the shack. Looking to his left, he noticed long red tresses; on his right, he saw brown spiky hair. They had worried looks on their sleeping face and the looks were in his directions. So they were worried. And that made him happy. He was happy that they were worried because it told Riku that they cared about him. With that knowledge, he allowed himself to fall asleep again.

Riku awoke from his nap unusually refreshed. He had never felt so full of energy. The green-eyed boy got up jauntily and removed the bandages. As he did, the bandages disintegrated. Riku raised an eyebrow but otherwise said nothing.

The green-eyed teen surveyed his surroundings. Kairi and Sora didn't get up when he did. That was okay. He didn't want to disturb either of them. Let them sleep.

Riku walked out of the shack and felt the cool sea breeze on his face. It was delicious. After yesterday, he wanted not to do anything strenuous. The silver-haired teen was still getting used to the idea that he was had darkness inside of him.

_You were filled with darkness the day you were born. You will never be like Sora. _

Those words stood out in his mind. What could the Knight Errant have meant when he said that? Riku tried to find a favorable response to that but he couldn't. After seeing that his father was a demon last night, there was nothing of which he could be sure. Did that mean that he was a demon too? No, he was sure that he was not a demon. But what else could it mean for the Knight Errant to say that he was filled with darkness.

_Light and darkness are not synonymous with good and evil. Light and darkness are two halves of a whole. _

Those words gave him some comfort. Perhaps the Knight was talking about a yin-yang thing.

_Darkness cannot exist without the light for if there is no light, there is no darkness, just emptiness. _

It went against everything that he had ever heard. Light is good. Darkness is evil. And yet, the Knight Errant told him that that was not the case. Riku decided not to dwell on it.

Riku looked out to the sea. He remembered his dreams with Sora and Kairi to leave this island. In fact, it took place on a day just like this. The sun was rising high in the sky, showing a palette of orange, red, blue, yellow and white. It was very beautiful. It was as if it was absolving him of everything that he did. He allowed himself to bask in the scene.

* * *

Kairi woke up a few minutes later. She saw that Riku wasn't in the shack and was worried for a moment. However, she figured that he was probably outside. Sora, on the other hand, was sleeping soundly. From the way that he was positioned, sprawled out on his sleeping bag, it looked like he was really tired. Kairi smiled. She thought that Sora was cute like that so she decided not to disturb him

Kairi opened the door of the shack and exited the shabbily built edifice. It was then when she saw Riku sitting on the pier where they had usually met as if it were a normal day. The scene before her was quite serene. Riku's stance was one free of worry and care. It was as if he was unencumbered by the weight of the new threat. That made her happy.

After learning about her feelings for him, Kairi was at ease. It was something that she hadn't felt in a long time. Not even a week ago, no one on the island had remembered anything about him and Sora. She was livid. How could everyone who had had contact with them not remember anything, especially when they were pretty unforgettable.

None of that mattered now. The two boys were back home. Everything else didn't matter.

Kairi reverently approached Riku. She didn't want to disturb him.

Riku noticed a change in the air. Sniffing quickly, a smile crept across his face. "Good morning, Kairi."

Kairi gasped softly. She never expected Riku to notice her presence without looking at her.

"How did you know?" She asked.

"I just did." Riku responded enigmatically.

Kairi walked up to Riku and sat on the pier next to him. Neither said a thing. Both just reveled in the moment.

Kairi twisted her hands. There was something on her mind but she didn't want to bring it up for fear of destroying their peace. Riku noticed her body language.

"What's on your mind?" He asked.

Kairi bowed her head in shame. This wasn't a subject she wanted to broach with reckless abandon. "I don't want to say anything."

Riku deduced that this had something to do with last night. "What is it that you wanted to ask me?"

Kairi took a deep breath. "Feel free to say no but I have to ask about your father."

Riku closed his eyes. That was the last thing he wanted to talk about but not saying anything would only make the situation worse. He didn't want Kairi to worry.

"I suppose you want to hear it too, right Sora?" Riku commented offhandedly.

Kairi turned around and Sora was standing behind them as well, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Yeah, I do." Sora yawned.

Kairi was amazed. She wondered how Riku knew that Sora was behind them without even looking. However, she didn't let it deter her from asking what she wanted to know.

"Fine, I'll tell you." Riku huffed. He would have rather not burden them with his own problems. "My father was a world-class jerk." He started. "For some reason, I can't remember a time that I liked him. He never was happy with me. I never understood it myself. I always thought that my father was some sort of demon. But I never would have imagine that it would be true."

Sora grabbed Riku's hand, an action that shocked both Riku and Kairi. "You are not a demon, if that's what you are thinking."

That was the right thing to say to Riku as he smiled warmly. It was exactly the thing he needed to hear.

Kairi followed suit. "We love you. That's all that matters."

Riku bowed his head in appreciation. He was so happy that these two were in his life. Even if they never returned his feelings, it was just a comfort to him that they are there.

The three of them watched the sunrise together, enjoying the way that the colors of the sun mixed with the sky and ocean.

* * *

The three teenagers decided to prepare for their coming battles with Juusan Kikan with some training. As Kairi had no experience in the art of swordplay, Sora and Riku helped her refine her skill. After all, if she was going to fight, she was going to need all the help that she could get.

The first thing that the boys taught her was how to hold a sword. Riku demonstrated. Well, it was more like physically show her. Riku grabbed her arms gently and sidled close to her. Kairi could feel the soft breaths from Riku's nose on the nape of her neck. It tickled her. The redhead decided that she wasn't disturbed by this contact. Riku directed Kairi's body with his own, showing her the correct way to hold a sword.

Riku smirked. He saw the look that Sora was giving both of them. Rather than being jealous, his normally sapphire eyes were turning dark cerulean with lust. It was then that Sora sauntered in their direction. He playfully pushed Riku away from Kairi. The silver-haired teen didn't mind it because it gave him a chance to watch Sora interact with Kairi.

"Now that you know how to hold the sword, I'll teach you how to use it." Sora told Kairi.

Kairi couldn't believe where this was going. This was starting to get intense. What was suppose to be a simple training session started to become hot and heavy. Not that she was complaining. Being this close to the two boys was starting to make her feel things that she had never felt in her life.

The training session was over, much to her dismay. At least Kairi had a better understanding of how to fight thanks to Sora and Riku.

The sun had made its way halfway through its course. That's when Sora's stomach rumbled loudly.

"Well, yes, it is time for food, Sora." Riku smirked smugly.

Sora blushed appropriately. Kairi laughed.

"Well, Kairi, you get all the food ready." Riku took charge. "Sora, you get the plates and stuff. And I'll start the fire and prepare everything else."

The plan was good to the other two and so they both went to their respective duties. Ironically, the three of them were thinking about the same thing.

* * *

Sora breathed in and out rapidly. Ever since being reunited with Riku and Kairi, the brunet had wondered what kind of relationship he was going to have with the two of them. It was then that he remembered that night when they became close.

That night, they slept on the beach together in a state of half-dress. Sora was hugged on both sides by Kairi and Riku. They made him feel loved. It wasn't that amicable love or the love between siblings. This was deeper. It was dark threaten to swallow him whole. And the funny thing was that he wanted that.

However, he really had no knowledge of how things were suppose to progress from there. How does one love two other people? Sora's mother taught him about the Birds and the Bees... well, sort of. She had told him about puzzle pieces, how there was one that connected with another and they formed a picture. It left Sora confused as to its meaning. Ergo, the brunet learned about sex the way that most boys learn about it, through girlie magazines.

Riku, Tidus, Wakka and himself, maybe a year or two ago, snatched a nudie mag from a store and flipped through the pages. In it were depictions of hardcore sex and the like. There were several pictures of a woman pleasuring two men at the same time. Sora was somewhat aroused by this. He had never seen the nude body of a woman before and it was exciting. Yet, it left him with a sense of emptiness. He could not relate to the woman in the magazine who was pleasuring the guys. Sure, she had the look of lust but there was just something off about it. At that point, he didn't understand.

Of course, his mother caught wind of their doings and sat Sora down for a talk. This conversation was one of the reasons he wish that he had a dad in his life (his father died when he was young, his mother told him). His mother was embarrassed about talking about sex and when she learned what he saw, she was livid. Sora's mother told him that pornography was degrading to women and that he should never look at a woman like that. After that, the subject was closed and it was never brought up again.

Sora never looked at pornography again. And his mother never mentioned sex either. It left him sexually stunted. How was he to respond to these feelings that were starting to well up inside him? The brunet didn't know. And now things were getting intense between him and the other two. When the time does come (for certain he knows that it will), would he be able to connect with those two on such a level?

Strangely enough, Sora remembered something from yesterday. After he took a bath by the waterfall, he remembered stepping on something sticky in the sand. At the time, he couldn't identify what it was that he was touching but now he did. It was semen. He knew that much about sex at least. Sora didn't touch himself and so the only other person who could have done such a thing was Riku. The place that he found it was in a good position of seeing the waterfall without being noticed. Sora blushed. Was Riku watching and.... touching himself... while he was bathing?

Sora didn't know. He didn't know how to take this new information. Better to deal with it when it came.

* * *

Kairi had never been taught feelings of love and lust. Her adoptive father, the Mayor, fed her, clothed her and gave her a place to stay. However, that was the most he could do. For one thing, Kairi wasn't the Mayor's actual daughter. There was very little connection. Oh, the Mayor cared for her but it wasn't the same as being connected by blood. Plus he worked all hours of the day and night so he had little time for her. Kairi wasn't bitter but it did leave her bereft of knowledge of the Birds and Bees. Kairi, to be honest, wasn't sure if she was ready to be deeply intimate yet but it was certain to her that she did want to be with both Sora and Riku. They made her feel safe. And that was important to her. After the previous year's "adventure", she came to the conclusion that there was no way her feelings would change for them.

Kairi was nervous that both boys were more "advanced" than her, that they had more experience with others. It was that moment that she cursed her virginity. She wanted so much to be the one to experience that first with either Sora or Riku.

The redhead sighed. There was no use over-thinking these things. When it comes to it, it will come to it.

* * *

Riku, surprisingly enough, had a wealth of sexual knowledge. His father, the demon (at this time, he didn't know), had told him about sex, well sex between a man and woman. Although it wasn't graphic, it was still unsettling to hear these things from his father, well more so than it is with the average teenager. The way that this was conveyed was more authoritative than it needed to be, as if to tell an impressionable Riku that this was the only way that sex was suppose to be initiated, not even contemplating the relationship between two women or two men.

It was then that he gathered the boys to steal a nudie magazine from a local convenience store. It showed many depictions of sex that deviated from what his father had told him. On one section of the magazine, there was a woman who was engaging in a sex act with two other men. From its depiction, he would have thought that the woman enjoyed it, especially being forced into taking another man's penis in her mouth. She didn't look like she hated it at all. The boys' mouth remained agape. It was the sexiest thing that any of the boys had seen in their young lives.

In another section, there were two men engaging in a sex act. Although Wakka, who was holding the magazine at the time, flipped quickly through those pages, they left an imprint in his mind. Riku never knew that men could have sex together. From what his father told him, only men and women could have sex because they had the appropriate sexual organs. For the life of him, he couldn't understand what was wrong with that scene. Both of the guys looked to be enjoying the sex. So how could it be wrong?

He remembered that he was aroused by looking at these pictures. At that time, he didn't understand why that was. But now he did. Perhaps the term would be bisexual. However, Riku didn't identify it as that. All he knew is that Sora and Kairi made him happy. He loved both of them equally and powerfully.

It wasn't until a year later that he would understand his feelings for both Sora and Kairi. It was those feelings that would lead him down the dark path, making him susceptible to both Maleficent and Ansem. Their machinations preyed on his wish and violated it to the point that he became a monster. His love was both Riku's joy and his burden.

And Riku would have given up on his loves had it not been for the comforting words that King Mickey had given him in Kingdom Hearts.

_It is never wrong to love someone. It makes you stronger to have someone love you. ... Love is love, regardless of to whom it is directed ... All I can tell you is that you shouldn't be ashamed of whom you love. _

It gave him confidence in what he needed to do next. He needed to tell them how he felt. Then, at the very least, he'll know. The thought of confessing filled the silver-haired teen with dread but he knew it had to be done. Otherwise he couldn't move on from this. It would haunt him forever.

* * *

Each teen had completed their tasks and communed for lunch. It was horribly quiet for three friends who were starting to have feelings for each other. Sora decided to break the silence.

"So what did the Knight Errant mean that something was going to empower us in the next two weeks?" Sora asked.

This question did the trick as it distracted the other two teens from their hormones and fears.

"The Princesses of Heart came to me in a vision thing before you two returned. They said that they would try to reach us within the two weeks to tell us the new threat." Kairi informed the two boys.

"So we are waiting for them to contact you again." Riku supplied.

"Yes, I think so." Kairi nodded.

"Still, it's a little disturbing." Sora noted. "Basically, we are the only people still...." Sora couldn't finish the rest of his thought.

Riku sighed. He knew what Sora was trying to say. The three of them were the only survivors in Destiny Islands. It never occurred to him how eerily quiet the Islands actually were without people around to make some sort of noise. Right now, had this been a normal day, they could hear Selphie, Wakka and Tidus playing. There would be a hum from the main islands.

It was then that the three teenagers started to miss the people of Destiny Island. It was Juusan Kikan's fault. They would pay for hurting the people of Destiny Island.

"So what do you think that Juusan Kikan has to do with Kingdom Hearts?" Riku asked. As he was disconnected from the present world, he had no idea what was going on in the rest of the worlds.

"We may have another problem." Sora told the other two. "Maleficent is still alive."

The looks on the two teens were different. Riku's eyes darkened and his expression was dour. On the other hand, Kairi's face scrunched in confusion. "Who is Maleficent?" She asked.

Both of the boys were quiet for a space. Neither wanted to respond for different reasons. Sora didn't want to say anything about Maleficent because of her scheme to kidnap Kairi and the other Princesses of Hearts. Riku hated himself for his complacency in Maleficent's plans and his own involvement as well, kidnapping Princess Jasmine for the witch.

Kairi noticed both boys reluctance to say anything. "It's okay if you don't want to say anything about it. I understand."

Riku grabbed Kairi's hand, an action that somewhat shocked her. "It's not that we don't want to say anything. I don't know about Sora but I have my own issues with that witch."

Sora decided to tell her about the Maleficent that he knew. "That witch was the reason that the Princesses were captured." Sora began. "She and her band of goons wanted to get into Kingdom Hearts and the only way to do so was to capture all of the Princesses. That was the reason that Destiny Islands was destroyed."

Riku's eyes were downcast. So they didn't know about his involvement in the destruction of their home. Here was the test of their friendship. If he told Kairi and Sora about what happened the fateful night, would they hate him? Would they understand? Should he keep quiet about it?

"What's wrong, Riku?" Sora asked. "Are you thinking about what you did while with Maleficent?"

Riku's eyes widened. For some reason, the younger teen was empathetic to the silver-haired boy. It's not that Riku would say that Sora was dense all the time (naive maybe) but usually he wasn't attuned to the feelings of others. It must mean that whatever Riku was feeling must be so obvious.

Sora stood up sharply, signifying that his words were going to hold considerable weight. "Whatever you did before now doesn't matter anymore. I've already forgiven you that long ago."

"Sora" Riku breathed.

"What matters now is that you are here." Sora reminded Riku. "You don't belong to the darkness anymore."

Sora's odd choice of words at the end of his speech actually had an opposite effect on Riku than he had intended. The silver-haired teen remembered what the Knight Errant told him. _"You will never be a being of light."_ The teen would have fallen into despair until he remembered what else the warrior told him. _"Sora is your light. As he gets stronger, if you continue to choose and reaffirm that choice, so will you. ... Kairi is your anchor to keep you from slipping into the recesses of oblivion. She will keep you grounded as you and Sora grow stronger."_

Riku smiled. He would let everything go. Today is the first day of this rest of his life. He would do his best to stop dwelling on the past. With Sora and Kairi by his side, he would move forward.

* * *

After finishing their food, Sora and Riku decided to teach Kairi more about swordplay. Their session wasn't as sensual as it was in the morning. However Kairi was starting to improve with her own sword. Still, she was still rough around the edges. Sora and Riku were taking it easy on her so although she had the theoretical part of swordsmanship down-pat, the practical was a little hazy for her. She hadn't fought any Heartless so her real time experience was lacking.

Riku took charge of sparring with Kairi while Sora practiced with his Brilliant Lance. The brunet got the power part right but he had a problem with his accuracy. His attack curved too far to the right than what he wanted. If he was going to use this attack in battle, he wanted everything to be perfect. Sora was picky that way.

He was so distracted with trying to master his own power that he didn't notice Riku standing behind him. Sora felt the warm body behind him and shivered unconsciously.

Riku took Sora's hands and put them together. "You're overextending yourself, Sora." The silver haired teen whispered in his ear. "You shouldn't be working on power and then accuracy. You should be doing it the other way around. Work on your accuracy first."

Sora breathed in slowly. He was starting to get aroused. There would be time for that later, if there was a later. He followed what Riku told him, focusing on accuracy first. He made a small Brilliant Lance and threw it in the direction of the sea. This time, it went straight as an arrow. Sora smiled. He did it.

"Thanks, Riku." Sora smiled brilliantly.

Riku and Kairi were captivated by that smile. It was THE purest smile that either of them had ever seen. It was a smile that offered salvation, acceptance and hope. It was their beacon of light.

* * *

Night began to fall. The three had just finished dinner and were lying on the beach, looking at the stars. Sora and Kairi were lying on opposite sides of Riku. Riku enjoyed it. He was between his two loves. That was all that mattered.

Sora recounted his journey to his captive audience and they hung on his every word. He left out no detail, even reminiscing about more embarrassing stories, like how he got sucked into a book and met Winnie the Pooh.

Riku, as well as listening to Sora, was thinking. At this point, it was clear to him that Sora and Kairi felt the same way as he did. He really didn't want to push them into anything that they didn't want to do but he really couldn't help himself. All of the feelings of love were starting to well up inside him.

Sora noticed that Riku was zoning out. "Riku, is something the matter?" The brunet asked hesitantly.

Riku realized that it was now or never. It was time to reveal himself. He took a deep breath and moved towards Sora.

Sora's breath hitched. Kairi watched with wide eyes. What was Riku doing? Before Sora realized it, Riku's lips were on his own.

Sora couldn't believe it. Riku was kissing him. It was something that he never expected but wanted. And the kiss got even hotter when Riku slipped his tongue past his lips. He would have coughed instinctively had Riku not broken the contact, an act that left him mewling.

Riku loved the feel of Sora's lips on his own. (He could deal with the chapped lips) However, he didn't want to leave the other love of his life unattended. Letting go of Sora's lips, he quickly attacked Kairi's.

Kairi's eyes seemed permanently open, especially with the silver-haired boy kissing her. She had never felt anything this intense. However, she was about to correct herself as Riku pushed his tongue into Kairi's willing mouth.

After a couple of seconds, he ended the kiss. Riku had made his stand. His feelings were known.

There was an awkward silence. No one knew what to say. Riku sighed heavily. He knew that something like this would probably happen. He never expected either of them to fall into his lap. The silver-haired teen bowed his head in shame. It is because of this that he didn't see the darkening of both Sora and Kairi's eyes with lust. They gave a quick look at each other before looking their target.

Riku only felt himself being pushed down into the sand by four sure hands. Seconds later, he felt two pairs of lips on his face, kissing his forehead, his checks and his lips. Riku opened his eyes and saw what he had dreamed about for so long finally coming to fruition.

Sora and Kairi really didn't have any experience in this field. Their first kiss happened not even five minutes ago. They were driven by instinct and what they had seen in various depictions of romantic situations.

Kairi had once seen a soap opera in which a guy had planted kisses down a woman's neck, so she decided to do that. It got a very good reaction out of Riku. The normally stoic teen whined in pleasure.

Sora, however, wanted to do what Riku to him before. So he kissed Riku long and deep, trying his best to push his tongue into Riku's mouth. He got to do that when Kairi planted kisses on Riku's alabaster neck. Sora slipped in his tongue and it was electric when Riku's tongue twined with his own.

Riku couldn't believe that he was being brought to submission. And yet, he really liked it. However, he didn't want to go down easily and he also wanted to give pleasure to someone.

His hands moved slowly and crept closer to their targets. Since both Sora and Kairi were kissing him with their inexperienced but extremely enthusiastic lips, neither of them realized what he was doing until his cold hands were under their shirts.

Riku's left hand descended on Sora's smooth stomach. He could feel the beginnings of a six-pack forming. As long as Riku had known him, Sora was always skinny. But feeling him like this in such an intimate setting was indescribable.

Riku's right hand's felt Kairi's laced-bra. Now he had felt bras before, if one could count his mother's laundry (shudder), but this was different. This was the woman that he loved. His fingers traced over the bra's shape, making sure to take in account the shape of Kairi's small breasts.

When Riku's hands felt Sora and Kairi under their shirts, both of them stopped their kissings in a mix of trepidation and pleasure.

Riku didn't want to take this further but he couldn't help himself. He was driven by a force stronger than himself. It was passion and it was a beast stronger than himself. Just for tonight, he would let it consume him.

The beast easily ripped Kairi's down the middle, exposing her bra to both of the boys.

Kairi yelped as her shirt was ripped. She felt overly exposed now and so, instinctively she covered her breasts. Kissing was fine but she didn't know how to take this new action. She shivered but whether it was because of the cold or the fear, she didn't know.

If there was fear, it was instantly destroyed when she felt a pair of warm lips on her collarbone. Kairi's gasps sounded like a dog being scratched in its favorite spot. It was amazing. Her hesitation was slowly ebbing.

Sora looked onto this scene with fascination. He couldn't believe how fast everything was progressing. The brunet saw what he could only describe as Riku attacking Kairi's neck and moving lower. His breath hitched as the silver-haired teen stopped the girl's breasts. His nose was touching her bra. Sora's eyes widened so much, it hurt from the strain. What was Riku going to do?

Riku's response to Sora's inner thought was to look at him with a glance that he understood was lust. Sora was finding it hard to breathe with Riku looking at him with those green eyes of his. It was hypnotizing, drawing him into the jaws of a monster. That monster is called passion. As much as he tried to resist, the beast pulled him in. It was more powerful than he. Sora, for all of the Light inside of him, couldn't resist this dark creature. And soon, he was lost to it as well.

Sora crawled over towards Kairi like a tiger stalking its prey. Kairi was like a deer in the headlights. She saw Sora but made no effort to get away. The redhead breathed erratically. She couldn't believe what was happening. Now both boys were coming towards her as if possessed.

Sora was closer now to a woman's breasts than he had ever been in his life. He couldn't resist taking a whiff of them. He found that it smelled strange. There was a mixture of sweat from the days activities, the aroma of the sea, and some sort of incense that he had smelt it Agrabah. But the sight of Kairi's bra-held breasts was soon eclipsed when Riku's hand had easily undone the bra.

Kairi's bra was a strapless type so when Riku somehow undid the bra (Kairi was staring at the two boys so intently that she didn't notice the hand on her back), the article of clothing dropped without a sound.

**(Edited due to graphic content. See note below.)**

The three teens were completely out of breath after their 'activities'. No one thought today was going to end like this. And yet, not one of the teens complained. It was what they all wanted. Try as they might, they had no regrets.

The three had gotten down from their respective highs. For a while, no one spoke. The silence of post-coital bliss was enough. There was a small bit of awkwardness but that was about to go away very quickly.

"I love you." The three said almost in sync. With that, they broke out in giggles. It was just the break that they needed to disrupt the awkwardness.

It was one thing that they loved each other. It was quite another to consummate that love. The world may not accept it and the ramifications of their actions have yet to be known. But one thing's for sure. Whatever it was, they could handle it together.

* * *

There is a reason why I had to edit this. The last time I wrote a graphic sex scene, I got reported and the chapter was taken down. I didn't want it happening again so I am leaving the edited version here. If you want to see the unedited version, send me a review. For members of ff(dot)net, all you have to do is send me a review. I'll send you the link to my unedited version in a reply. For those who review anonymously, you have to leave your email address in the name section of the review. Otherwise, I will not be able to send you anything. ff(dot)net does not allow any redirects in its reviews. So if you put your email in the review, it will show up in my mailbox like this.

"This was so great. Can I have the unedited version. My email is" This is an automated message from fanfiction (blah blah blah)

Finally, tell me what you think about this chapter. I would love to engage my readers in discourse.

For those who've been following my stories, here's the order of what I'll be updating.

Once More, With Feeling: Act V, the final chapter.

Young Hearts, Run Free: Chapter 9

Only in My Dreams: Chapter 9

Dearly Beloved: Chapter 10

So, until the next update, Sparky out


	11. Apprehension

Wow. It has been a long, long, long, long time since I published anything. I've just been extremely busy with school. I have finally gained my masters in Psychology and am currently married to a sweet, yaoi obsessed woman who makes her loving husband write her hot, sweaty, sticky slash for some reason. Plus, I bought a house.

Does that mean that the craziness that has prevented me from writing my stories is done? Probably not. But I will try my best to post new chapters.

In fact, it is because of recent reviews that I have returned to writing. So thanks to those who have read this. This is for you guys.

**Chapter 10: Apprehension**

_We have no need for fear. Fear is unnecessary for us because it prevents us from doing what needs to be done.

* * *

_

"Are you saying that you failed in your mission and the box was destroyed, Larxene?" Saix queried, although, by the sound of it, Saix was more furious than questioning.

The thirteen members of Juusan Kikan convened at the throne room.

Larxene didn't look at Saix but she did blow her bangs out of her face in response. There was nothing to say to this.

Saix continued as if he got a response. "That box was vital to Juusan Kikan and you let it be broken. This is unacceptable."

A hand reached out from the highest throne. "That is enough, Saix." Xemnas told him. "What's done is done."

"Of course." Saix was surprised by the nonchalance in Xemnas's voice but deferred to his wishes.

Xemnas looked at Larxene and smiled. "You needn't worry. The box was meant to be destroyed."

Larxene and Saix looked at the Superior in confusion.

"What do you mean?" Saix questioned.

Xemnas looked at Vexen and nodded. Vexen took that as his moment to speak.

"The box was a trap for our stalker. When it is destroyed, it releases a microscopic dust that attaches to the attacker and can be tracked via the Castle's computers."

This news came as a shock to everyone but Xemnas and Vexen.

"Why weren't we informed?" Xaldin asked in a semblance of anger.

Xemnas smirked. "That brings me to my next point. I believe that someone has been feeding information to this 'Knight Errant'."

There were loud whispers among the members about who was a traitor or not. Xemnas glared at his subordinates to see whether or not he could ascertain their intentions.

Xigbar was a ruthless person. It was hard to figure him out at times. But the Freeshooter was one of the founding members. He found it hard to believe the man with the eyepatch would betray him now.

Xaldin was a wild one. He was always off doing his own thing. This man was vicious but not without cause. He has served the Order well though and it didn't seem as if he'd do anything now.

Vexen, the scientist, was too cowed by him to even think about revolting against him. On the pecking order, he wasn't that higher than Demyx. It seemed unfathomable that all of Vexen's actions were a ruse.

Lexaeus was the giant muscle head of the Order. Although he was intelligent, his voluntary vow of silence led others to believe that he was either a mute or an idiot. Both are further from the truth. Xemnas knew that Lexaeus would never betray the Order because he believes in its cause.

Another person who Xemnas didn't have to worry about betraying the Order was Zexion. Of all the people who have joined, Zexion is the most loyal to the Order. His schemes are only for the enemies.

Saix was his right hand. He is the one who made sure that his wishes were done. However, there was something inside of Saix that made him ponder. It wasn't anything that would prevent Saix from fulfilling his duties but still…

Axel was probably the hardest read of all the Order. With his cat-like eyes and distance stare, not even he could discern his thoughts. It seems that he has formed a carnal connection with Roxas but beyond that Xemnas couldn't identify whether Axel was a friend or foe. He would have to watch this one.

Demyx was no threat to him. The Melodious Nocturne was too lazy to even begin planning something against him or the Order. Although, it might be better for the Order if he did join with his enemies…

Luxord is pretty happy with his place. He had no care for anything: the Order's plans, his enemies or even himself. All was a game of chance for him and he loved to play.

Xemnas knew that Marluxia wanted to supplant him as the Superior. It was amusing to say the least. He would bide his time with Marluxia and then when he least expected it…

Xemnas also knew that Larxene was also in league with Marluxia. Her savagery, he knew, would be undoing. Let her think that she is getting away with it.

Roxas, he knew, was intimidated by him. However, even though the boy didn't know it yet, he was the literal key to his entire plans. His ideal world rested on this child. It would be wise to make sure that there is no undue influence on this child. Axel had already made a move to start a relationship, if you can call what that two Nobodies had a relationship, and, though it has not stopped Roxas from completing his missions, a little caution goes a long way.

"But do not worry. The traitor will reveal themselves when they slip up eventually. For now, I will continue as if there wasn't one."

"Is that wise, Lord Xemnas?" Saix asked.

"What can this Knight Errant do against my plans?" He responded. "Besides, you will be the one to hunt down this man. Destroy him."

"So be it."

"As for the rest of you." He addressed the Order. "You must create chaos throughout the worlds so that Kingdom Hearts may be born. You have your orders."

He outstretched his hand. "Go!"

The others disappeared using the Corridors of Darkness.

* * *

Leon was sitting in a chair in the Disney Castle, deep in thought. There was something on his mind.

Suddenly, a portal was opened next to him. From out of this portal, a figure dressed in a black trench coat walked out from it. Even without looking at the person, he knew exactly who it was.

"I almost had forgotten about you, Caserta." Leon smirked.

"I'm hurt, Squall." Caserta laughed. "I would have thought that you of all people would remember me. Although, it has been more than two years…"

"I was thrown when you called yourself the 'Knight Errant', Caserta. Also, please call me Leon." The ginger haired man told him.

Caserta, the Knight Errant, huffed. "You can't wallow in sadness forever, Sq-Leon." Caserta corrected himself. "It will fester and consume you."

"You're one to talk."

Caserta changed the subject. "How are the people of Destiny Islands?"

Leon's eyes narrowed in sadness. "Many have already died, mostly adults. Some of the children are in comas. It's a magical coma and none of our people know how to break it."

Caserta looked away from Leon. "If I had known what they were planning, I would have been there sooner."

Leon looked at the cloaked man. "It's not like you to get hung up on the things you can't change.

Caserta snorted. "You know me too well."

Leon adjusted in his seat. "Have you learned anything new on Juusan Kikan?" The gunblader changed the subject.

"I have much to discuss with you but now isn't the time. Besides, I want Sora and the others to hear this as well."

"Fair enough, Caserta."

The Knight Errant laughed. "Speaking of those kids, I've been testing them to see where they are on, power-wise."

"What do you think of them?" Leon asked. "Sora is probably our greatest ally against the Heartless with his Keyblade. Plus he is aligned with Light."

"Sora's greatest asset isn't his Keyblade or his alignment with the Light. It is a heart with a strong Will. That Will is enough to see him through anything. The other two have some hang-ups but it isn't anything that cannot be overcome."

Leon didn't respond to that. His mind was elsewhere.

"Still thinking about Hollow Bastion?" Caserta asked.

"Yeah."

After Sora had defeated Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, Leon and his crew were set to retake Hollow Bastion. However, they were repelled by an unknown force. This force was able to repel the power of the Princess of Hearts and the powers of Darkness that Maleficent had summoned at once. Leon and the others didn't know it at the time, but this power was Juusan Kikan.

It wasn't long until Juusan Kikan had overtaken Hollow Bastion and made it one of their bases. Their reason was simple. Ansem the Wise, the king who had ruled that world at one time, had a wealth of knowledge concerning the Heartless and the nature of the universe. Strategically, it also served as a base that Juusan Kikan _could_ use to one day conquer Disney Castle. However, Disney Castle was better protected than most, thanks to the Cornerstone of Light, effectively preventing anyone from using the Corridors of Darkness.

"All of the information on that supercomputer could be used to destroy Disney Castle." Leon reminded him. "Our focus should be on reclaiming Hollow Bastion."

"If you go in now, your forces will be overwhelmed by the Heartless and Nobody there." The Knight Errant told him bluntly. "It is best that you wait for those three. And I have a feeling that those children that survived the attack on Destiny Island will be instrumental in this war."

Leon was skeptical but said nothing.

"In the meantime, Leon, I'll check the Library of Ivalice to see if there isn't anything that can be done about those children's coma."

With that, Caserta, the Knight Errant, opened a portal with his hand.

Leon got up from his seat to grab Caserta before he left. "If you should see Sora and the others before I do, can you test them one last time? I want you to become their teacher when they arrive to this castle."

The cloaked man nodded and walked through the portal, leaving Leon alone once more.

"That guy…" Leon shook his head. "It's always difficult to know what he is thinking."

* * *

The sun began its daily course through the sky as morning arrived on Destiny Islands. In its wake, it shines on three figures. They are naked as the day they were born, sleeping sprawled across the beach. The ocean waves could be heard in the background, gently lapping the sand. It was quiet and serene. This place could be called paradise.

Weary eyes feel the light from the sun shining down on them and they blink to adjust their pupils to its onslaught.

Riku was the first to get up. His body was completely spent after the events of last night. It was probably the defining moment of his young life. He had never thought that this day would come and, after his descent into darkness, he had no reason to believe that it would. However, something happened that night. That act of love touched his heart. That one beautiful night felt like the weight of the world was lifted from his shoulder for once. It was nice to think about something other than the sins that he had committed.

He looked at Sora and Kairi in their blissful, naked sleep.

Sora, with his boyish good looks, was wrinkling his nose at the light that was bombarding his face. He looked like he wanted to sleep for a bit longer. Riku thought it was cute and smiled, holding back a chuckle so that the two can sleep.

Kairi, with her womanly charms, was sleeping peacefully in the ensuing brightness. She wasn't as shy as she was last night. Her breasts were exposed and she wasn't covering them like she tried to do last night.

Riku stretched his limbs and felt a satisfying pop when he did. He picked himself up from the sandy beach. Noticing his state of undress for the first time, he went to retrieve his boxer shorts that he had discarded when the escapade began and walked towards the waterfall.

* * *

Caserta, the Knight Errant, was walking within the portal that he had created when he felt a presence behind him. Quickly, he turned around and summoned his Keyblade. When he saw the form of the presence that he had felt, he chuckled. It was a member of Juusan Kikan. The hood obscured his face. From the looks of his broad shoulders, Caserta concluded that it must be a man and that he was quite muscular.

"I have to say that I am impressed that Juusan Kikan was able to follow me here." He clucked his tongue.

"There is no place that you can hide from us." The man in the cloak responded.

Caserta shook his head. "You have me at a disadvantage. I must know who you are. It's only fair."

The cloaked man shook his head. "I am not interested in what is fair or right. I am interested in getting the job done for Lord Xemnas." With a wave of his hands, he summoned two Berserker Nobodies.

"Berserker Nobodies, huh?" Caserta said in a whimsical tone. "You must be Number VII, Saix, the Moon's Dancing Demon."

Saix removed his hood to reveal his visage. Although the eyes betrayed nothing, Caserta knew that Number VII was out for blood.

"I have to know. How did you find me within this portal?"

"Do you expect me to answer that?" Saix spat.

Caserta shrugged his shoulders. "Not really. But I kind of hoped that you would."

"I have been sent on orders to eliminate you." Saix told him, ignoring the last response.

"I see. But I must tell you that you aren't going to be able to harm me in this place."

Saix's eyes narrowed. "Care to test that theory?"

Caserta put his fingers to his forehead in annoyance. "I should tell you that this place where we are isn't the Corridors of Darkness. This is the Dimensional Cleft, a place that can only be utilized effectively by the Knight Errant and those who are protected by his power."

Saix looked around and found no darkness in this place. He didn't notice up until now that he wasn't in the Corridors of Darkness. All he remembered was following the signal that was provided him by Vexen on orders of Lord Xemnas. Soon, he found him and was ready to pounce had the man not sensed the blue haired man's presence.

"In fact, anyone who tries to use violence in this place is immediately expelled." Caserta continued. "So, your best bet is to leave this place."

"If that is so, why did you summon your Keyblade?" Saix asked.

"Force of habit."

Saix didn't believe a word that the man in front of him said but was cautious nonetheless. He sent the Berserkers to attack the Knight Errant. However, before they could even get close, the two Berserkers were violently ripped apart.

"Didn't I tell you?" Caserta laughed. "You aren't going to get close when you are in this place. Violence is strictly prohibited in this place to keep the fabric of this dimension intact."

Saix closed his eyes in acceptance. "So be it, Knight Errant. But you should beware. When you leave this place, I will destroy you." With that, the blue haired man waved his hand and opened a Corridor of Darkness to return back to headquarters."

Caserta released the Keyblade in his hand. "Damn. That he was able to find me even here. There must have been something that happened during that fight on Destiny Islands that allowed him to track me." He looked at his trench coat. "Must be something on the cloak…

* * *

Caserta sighed. "Looks like I'm not going to be able to check in on those three at this point. How unfortunate." Caserta gave up musing on these events and continued on his way.

Riku was relaxing under the shade of the papou fruit tree when he felt two comforting presences. He had no need to turn around because he knew who those two people were. "Good morning, Sora, Kairi!" He smiled.

Sora and Kairi sat on opposite ends of Riku and enjoyed the tranquility that the island had to offer.

No one said a thing, each of them reflecting on the event that happened last night. Try as they might, not one of them could see a single thing that they did wrong. It was like nature herself had approved of such a consummation.

"So what happens now?" Sora asked. There was a slight hesitancy in his voice, as if he was afraid that this was a one time thing.

Riku sighed. He figured that one of them would have a feeling like this was a one night stand. However, that was far from the truth. Riku loved them and wanted to be with them and those two with him. "What do you want to have happen?" Riku asked.

"Was last night a one time deal?" Kairi asked, giving voice to the niggling fears that they all had.

Riku closed his eyes. As much as he wanted to have Sora and Kairi, he wasn't comfortable forcing them to do what they didn't want to do. So he was going to let them decide for themselves. "What do you two want?"

Sora shot up from his seated position and yelled. "I don't want this to end. I want more. I love you two. I spent the better part of a year searching for you guys and now that I found you, I don't want to lose you."

Sora's outburst caused Riku's eyes to water. This was exactly what he wanted. He looked at Kairi and saw her nodding. "That's what I want, too." Kairi smiled.

Riku closed his eyes and smiled so wide, his teeth were visible. He laughed with mirth.

Sora furrowed his brow. "What's with the laughing?"

"You guys have no idea how long I waited to hear those words." The silver haired teen smiled. "It makes me happy."

Sora and Kairi hugged Riku from each side. There was something that happened last night that would changes those three forever. And none of them would change it for anything.

* * *

Leon walked from the library of Disney Castle towards the throne room. Caserta's words were echoing in his mind. He was right. As things stood now, they weren't ready to take back Hollow Bastion. The gunblader growled. That wasn't what he wanted to hear. But Caserta was always honest with him, almost brutally so.

The giant doors of the throne room were always intimidating to people. However, Leon was a seasoned veteran of the Sorceress War. Not much frightened him… well Aerith's cooking, but not much else.

Leon found the knob to the throne room door and opened the much smaller door so that he could enter the room.

Before his eyes, he saw King Mickey Mouse and Queen Minnie Mouse discussing something with the Count Wizard Donald Duck and the Captain of the Royal Guard Goofy. Leon cleared his throat. The four turned their attention to Leon.

"Ahh, Leon." Mickey nodded. "How may I be of assistance?"

"I just got a message from Caserta." Leon told them.

Mickey's eyebrows furrowed. "Was he the source of the magic disturbance that happened some time ago?"

"Yes, your majesty."

"I see. What did he tell you?"

"He's been investigating Juusan Kikan and he'll be informing us when he returns."

Mickey looked at Leon. He noticed that there was something that he wasn't saying. "Is there anything else?"

Leon sighed. So the king noticed. "He was saying that we don't have the power to take back Hollow Bastion."

"Do not despair, Leon." Queen Minnie spoke up. "We may not have the power to recapture Hollow Bastion now. But I promise that we will do everything in our power to do it."

Leon bowed his head in respect. With that, he turned around and left the throne room.

"What's wrong with Leon, your majesty?" Goofy asked.

Mickey closed his eyes somberly. "Leon is just frustrated. He, more than anyone, feels responsible for the destruction of Hollow Bastion."

"Everyone deals with loss in different ways, Goofy." Minnie continued. "Leon just wants to reclaim what was taken from him."

"What's that, my Lady?" Donald asked.

"His pride."

"But to hear from Caserta is a glad tiding indeed." Mickey trumpeted. "We haven't heard a word from him in over two years. I am glad to hear that he is okay."

Donald was a little confused. "Who is Caserta, your Majesty?"

"Caserta is a Keyblade Master. He showed up several years ago to tell me of the disappearance of some stars. He's very powerful, probably more than me."

"Why has he been gone this long?" Goofy asked

"I remember the words that he said to me. 'You are a good king, but I must follow the orders given to me by the one I serve.' And then, he left. He went to investigate something but never said what it was."

"You can always ask him when he comes back, dear." Minnie told him.

"You're right." Mickey smiled. He turned to Donald and Goofy. "Donald, Goofy, there is something that I need you to do.

* * *

Night has fallen on Destiny Islands. After a long day of training, swimming and being in each other's company, Kairi, Riku and Sora were winding down to go to sleep when Kairi felt something.

It was as if someone was calling her heart.

Riku noticed something was wrong. "What's the matter, Kairi?"

She didn't answer. Instead, a Pulse started to reverberate from her. Sora and Riku could hear a loud _ba-dump ba-dump _from her body.

"What's going on, Kairi?" Sora asked.

In an instant, a bright flash engulfed the three. When they opened their eyes (which they didn't realize that they closed) they found themselves in a white void. They looked around for something familiar and couldn't find anything.

"Where are we?" Kairi asked.

To answer that question, six lights appeared around her. Sora and Riku tried to summon their respective Keyblades but found that they couldn't.

"Do not be afraid." One of the lights spoke. "We are on your side."

The lights took form. They became the Princesses of Heart: Aurora, Snow White, Cinderella, Belle, Jasmine and Alice. They were using Kairi as a conduit and as a voice.

"We have been waiting for you." Aurora told them. "Oh Hero of Light and Hero of Dark, please listen to our pleas."

Sora and Riku were enraptured by the scene. They weakly nodded and gave the Princesses their full attention.

"Hero of Light" Cinderella spoke. "You have done well of halting the deluge of Heartless by sealing the door. However, a new threat is rising."

"Juusan Kikan." Sora provided.

"You are correct." Snow White told him. "They without hearts are a great threat to the peace that you are enjoying. However, there is another power rising, a force quite ancient and powerful."

"The Knight Errant." Riku spat.

"No. It isn't him." Belle told the silver-haired teen. "Although we have a vague awareness of his presence, he is not the power that we are now sensing. This power that we sense has existed long before our time and probably long before that."

"What is it?" Kairi asked.

"We don't know" Jasmine said with great reluctance "but this power is responsible for many of the events that have happened so far and many of the events that are yet to come. There is much we don't know about this person's motives."

"Like what?" Sora asked.

"Oh, Princess Kairi" Alice asked. "Do you believe that you arriving on this island was a coincidence? This was influenced by the woman who sees and knows all. Her power is quite frightening. "

"What else?" Riku asked. He was mad at the idea of things was being manipulated. After his time with Maleficent and then with Ansem, he hated that his actions were somehow part of a larger scheme that he couldn't see.

"The reason you have your respective Keyblades are because of that woman." Aurora told them. "There are no coincidences in this world, only inevitability."

Sora furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't really understand all of this. "Well, I don't really get it but I'll continue to fight for what I believe in and that's that."

The finality of how Sora spoke sparked something in Riku. There was no hesitation in his voice, just determination. Such confidence… It made him a bit jealous. He wished to have that assuredness with himself. With everything that he has gone through in the past year, it made him cynical about himself.

"That kind of attitude will get you through your hardships." Cinderella smiled. "Now go. They are waiting for you."

Just as quickly the white void appeared, it disappeared just as fast. The three found themselves back at Destiny Islands.

Sora was a bit confused. "Who's waiting for us?"

His own question was answer when he heard the roar of a powerful engine. The three turned around to see the Gummiship landing on the island.

Sora's mouth became a big smile. "It's the Gummiship."

When the ship landed, two familiar faces exited the ship. Sora immediately ran to them. "Donald, Goofy!" He shouted with happiness. He pounced on them and gave each a big hug.

"Come on, Sora." Goofy told him. "His majesty wants you three to come back to the castle."

Sora motioned for Riku and Kairi to join him, which they did.

"We have many things we have to discuss." Donald told the three. "But right now, just get on."

Riku shrugged his shoulders. There was nothing left on this island anyways. The people were gone. The only ones left were them and if Kairi and Sora were going to Disney Castle, he would go too. Besides, he wanted to talk with the king about the upcoming events.

Kairi wanted to go because she had never seen Disney Castle. The thought of seeing something foreign was exciting.

Sora just wanted to be with Donald and Goofy again. It would be like the year he spent traveling across the worlds and saving everyone. Not that they could replace Riku and Kairi but it was always nice to travel with friends.

"Well, don't just stand there," Jiminy Cricket squeaked from Donald's magician's hat. "Let's get going."

The three residents of Destiny Island boarded the Gummiship, leaving their home behind.

* * *

**End of Chapter 10**

For those who have been asking for the unedited version of the last chapter, I will post the link for my adultfanfiction(dot)net account. You can go check it out there.

So, tell me what you think of the story as it stands. Please?

**_Sparky, out_**


	12. Ephemeral Dream

Chapter 12: Ephemeral Dream

_The man who stalks in the shadows. His enemies see only the glint of his blade and then they fall._

Wow! A chapter update that doesn't take half a year to publish. I'm on a roll. Anyways, this chapter is about 23 pages long in Word so enjoy it. As for the chapter, Ephemeral Dream is the theme song to the new character Caserta to be properly introduced. I took it from Setsuka from Soul Caliber 3. I love that song._  
_

* * *

Aboard the Gummiship were Sora, Riku, Kairi, Donald and Goofy. Chip and Dale were driving the vehicle while the others were discussing what to do next. Some bottled water and crackers were passed around as they spoke.

"The King asked us to go to Traverse Town." Donald told the Destiny Islands three. "We are looking for a crown or something."

Sora looked at the magician quizzically. "A crown? What's it for?"

"He didn't say. All he said about the crown is that there is power in it and that it had to be recovered." Donald told him.

"So, the King wants us to get it before Juusan Kikan." Riku mused aloud.

"I think that's why." Goofy added.

"Well, let's get the crown and worry about what it does later." Kairi told them

"That's a good idea." Donald agreed.

Everyone else nodded their heads.

Donald's eyes lit up as he just remembered something. "That's right. I just remembered something."

"About that Caserta guy, right?" Goofy nodded.

"Caserta?" Kairi asked. She didn't know any Caserta.

"Well, you might know him better as the Knight Errant." Donald told her.

There was an audible gasp from Sora, Riku and Kairi.

"How do you know his name?" Riku growled. He did not like the Knight Errant. There was something about him that didn't sit right with the silver haired warrior. He couldn't put his finger on it but he couldn't dismiss this feeling.

"He visited Leon yesterday." Donald answered the group. "Apparently, Leon and the King have known him many years ago."

Sora remembered what the Knight Errant Caserta told him the last time he saw him. _The next time we meet, it will be face to face_. Those words were etched into his mind. "So we are going finally meet him without the black coat."

"I think so." Goofy shrugged his shoulders. "The King didn't say anything about that."

"Well, let's just worry about it when it happens." Kairi finished.

"Well, it's gonna take some time to get to Traverse Town." Goofy told the threesome. "If you three want to take a nap or something, there are quarters in the back." He pointed in the direction of the quarters.

Sora took it upon himself to show Riku and Kairi around the Gummiship. "I want to show you how this baby works." He smiled, putting his hands behind his head as he is used to doing.

Kairi gladly followed with Riku close behind her, putting the bottled water in one of his pockets. The silver haired teen had other things on his mind.

"_Why would Juusan Kikan want this crown? What kind of power could it possess that would grab their attention? And what about the Knight Errant? What are his goals?"_

"RIKU." A sharp sound pierced his ear.

Riku's attention was reverted from his inner thoughts to see a miffed Sora looking at him. "I'm giving the grand tour and you are off in your head." Sora huffed. "Not cool."

Riku's lips made a small smile. Sora looking indignant was actually kind of cute. "Alright, alright. I'll pay attention."

Sora led Kairi and Riku to the ship's quarters. Inside were six beds, unadorned with even the slightest bit of frill.

"And this is where we sleep while we are on the ship." Sora announced as if he was the grand tour guide.

Riku smirked. "So there is no privacy here, I see."

Sora saw Riku's smirk and blushed. The events of last night came flooding back to him. He hadn't thought about the events of last night all day but his male lover's innuendo brought the event to the forefront of his mind.

He loved what happened last night. It was like some force was acting on his behalf and taking control of his actions… in a good way. It made him feel a part of something greater than himself. There was something during that night that connected him with Riku and Kairi. It was hard to describe, even to himself. But during that night, something stirred deep within him and made it so that he could connect with Kairi and Riku. The thought was foreign but it was almost as if he touched their souls.

"No." Sora said softly. "There is no privacy here."

Kairi could feel herself blush when Riku said that. Having her eyes opened to the world of adulthood, she started to see things in a different light. Riku's comment made her hot under the collar.

Riku started stalking towards Sora. "It's just too bad that there's no privacy here, Sora." He whispered huskily.

Sora instinctively moved back. "Why?"

Kairi looked at this with rapt attention. Seeing the two boys like this got her excited. It was strange. Before last night, she would have never thought herself as sexual. And now, she couldn't get sex out of her mind. It wasn't as if she were a pervert. But something awoke within her, like a hunger for someone who hasn't eaten in a long time. It was an apt analogy.

"Think of all of the things that we could do if there was?" Riku whispered.

Sora was not going to let him take advantage of him like this. Two can play at this game.

"Like what?" Sora smirked. His hand descended to Riku's thigh. He wasn't sure if this was appropriate or not. He would let his instinct guide him.

_Cheeky bastard_, Riku thought to himself. Was this an unrestrained part of Sora? "No. Something like this." Riku responded as his own hand crept along Sora's side in a sensual dance of fingers and skin.

Kairi could play the bystander no longer. She moved herself to get into the action. She made her way towards Sora and her own hands danced along Sora's other side.

Sora was on sensory overload. The feel of both hands on him was pure pleasure. How something as demure as fingers on his side could be so arousing, Sora had no idea.

It was then that he felt something other than pleasure. It was a throbbing of his forehead. At first, he tried to ignore it. The pleasure that he was receiving was far better than the slight discomfort he was feeling. However, the pain became too much.

Riku looked into Sora's eyes, expecting to see pleasure. Instead, he saw a pained look on his face. Sora's blue eyes looked heavy and unfocused. "Are you okay, Sora?"

Sora didn't respond. His head began to droop.

Kairi saw this too and put a hand to Sora's forehead. It was burning up. "Sora, your forehead is hot."

Sora's legs gave out on him. Fortunately, both Kairi and Riku were able to grab him before he hit the deck. Riku shouldered most of Sora's weight on his own and placed him reverently onto one of the beds.

"He has a fever." Kairi told Riku.

"Okay." Riku said, taking command. "You go get Donald or Goofy to tell them. See if they can do something. I'll stay with him and make him comfortable."

Kairi nodded and ran out of the bed quarters. Riku wrapped Sora up in one of the blankets and tore off a piece of his shirt. When he did that, the shirt mended itself. Riku raised an eyebrow at this but said nothing. He took out the bottle of water that he received when they were talking about the Crown and moistened the cloth. He placed it gently on Sora's forehead.

Riku then took Sora's hand. "You are going to pull through, Sora. Kairi and I are going to make sure of that."

* * *

Sora felt himself being drawn into the Void. He didn't know how or why this happened. He couldn't even see his physical form. It was as if his heart had separated from his body. There was nothing he could do.

He heard a voice within the Void. "Warrior aligned with the Light," it called out to him. "How is it that you are able to come here?"

Sora tried to answer but found that his voice had left him. _I don't even know how I did this_, he thought.

"I understand," the voice responded to his thought. "You are incomplete."

_Incomplete_? _What does that mean_?

"You have lost something in the past, something precious. Your heart is responding to that by sending your Soul to the Temporality Cauldron."

_Lost something precious? Temporality Cauldron_?

"This is a place where people can view and sometimes alter the past, present and future. Your being here means that this is the will of the Prime Mover."

_Prime Mover_? This was getting too bizarre for Sora. _I just want to go back to them_.

"As soon as you see what you need to see."

In a burst of light, Sora found himself in a different place. He sees himself on the ground, keeling in pain. His Keyblade is thrust into the ground in an effort to stand up. Sora can see a shadowy figure standing over him with a Keyblade in hand.

"**You betrayed us all." The other Sora said. "Me… Kairi… everyone… suffering necessary"**

The true Sora couldn't make out some of the words that he was saying. It was like there was static.

_Why can't I hear everything?_ Sora asked

"It is because you don't understand all of the events that have come before this to make this event possible."

_Who is that standing over me_?

"I cannot say as it would overstep the bounds of interference that I am allowed to give at this point. Suffice to say that you trusted this person with your life. If the events happen in a certain way, this will occur."

_I won't let that happen._

"How will you stop it?" The voice asked

_I don't know but I won't let anyone suffer if I can stop it._

"Such bravado. And yet, the World is always saved by people like you."

Sora felt something disgusting in the back of his throat. It was an odd feeling.

* * *

Sora awoke just as Kairi pulled a spoon out of his mouth and massaged his throat. He found himself wrapped in a blanket with a piece of wet cloth on his forehead and a bad taste in his mouth.

He looked around and saw Kairi, Riku, Donald and Goofy around the bed that he was lying in at the moment. They all looked relieved.

"You're awake." Kairi breathed a sigh of relief.

"What happened?" Sora asked

"You have a fever. I just gave you some medicine to bring it down."

"Don't scare us like that." Riku chided him softly.

Sora cocked his head. "That's weird. I didn't feel bad before."

"Just lie down until we get to Traverse Town." Goofy told Sora. "We'll be there shortly."

"Yeah, we'll call you when we get there." Donald added.

Sora nodded and Donald and Goofy left the room.

Riku and Kairi, when they knew that those two had left the room, climbed in the bed with Sora and just held him. Nestled in the warmth that the two provided, the spiky haired warrior fell asleep.

An hour later, Sora could feel the ship descending. He looked to his left and right and saw that Kairi and Riku had fallen asleep with him. It made him feel good that the three of them weren't just in this relationship for the sex. His mind was telling him that it is a weird thing to be in love with two people. And yet, his heart told him that it was right and that there was nothing wrong about it.

He gently shook Riku and Kairi awake. "We're about to land." He said to them

Kairi stretched her limbs to get the sleep out of them while Riku rotated his arms.

"Are you feeling better, Sora?" Kairi asked in a motherly voice.

"Yeah." Sora answered. "I think I just need a nap to make me feel better."

Riku put a hand on Sora's forehead. "Your fever is gone."

Sora jumped to his feet and pumped his fist in the air. "Yeah. I'm fired up. I'm gonna find that crown."

Riku huffed in mock annoyance. "Yeah, yeah." But he was happy Sora was back to his happy, hyper self.

The threesome left the bed quarters to prepare for landing.

Sora, Riku, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy exited the Gummiship and walked into Traverse Town.

* * *

The town looked pretty hectic. There were many people running about the First District. The noise was overwhelming.

"What's going on?" Sora asked.

"I don't know." Donald answered.

"Let's ask around." Kairi suggested.

It was then that Kairi felt something. It felt like a heartbeat in her head. She couldn't place it but it was as though there was something attracting her like a magnet. The redhead tried to place the feeling as she scanned around the first district. Her eyes set on an individual in the crowd.

It was a man. This man had long green hair that was brushed and blown straight. But for some reason, Kairi felt that this pull was coming from this individual.

Kairi ran towards this man. The other four were left wondering what had gotten over her.

"Kairi, what's wrong?" Sora yelled after her. In turn, the four of them chased after Kairi.

Kairi finally reached the man that she felt drawn to and instantly, she found herself staring into sea green eyes.

"Are you alright?" the man asked her.

This man's long green hair wasn't his only defining feature. His piercing green eyes stared her down. The man was a medium built tan skin person with slightly callous hands. He wore a light zippered jacket that was opened to reveal a t shirt. He wore cut up jeans and stood with a commanding posture. Kairi looked away, a bit embarrassed that she was staring at this man.

"I'm fine." She apologized.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked

Kairi felt as though there were deeper connotations of what he was asking but didn't think anything of it.

"Go?"

"Yeah. This world is about to disappear." The man told her.

Sora and the gang came in when the man told Kairi that the world is going to disappear

"What do you mean '**Disappear'**? Sora asked. "The Heartless threat is gone."

"It is exactly because the Heartless threat is gone that this world is going to disappear." The man told the group.

"What do you mean?" Donald asked.

"This world is sort of a fail-safe. When worlds have been snuffed out by outside threats, this world, Traverse Town, appears to those who refuse to be extinguished. The people travel to Traverse Town and can stay here."

"Sort of like a home away from home." Goofy mused.

"Right." The man continued. "When the Heartless attacked, Traverse Town appeared as a refuge to those who survived the attacks. The people congregated here and created a makeshift society. But with the Heartless defeated and the worlds restored, most of the people decided to return to their own homes and so this world isn't needed. I am helping make preparations for the people who wish to return to their own worlds."

The long-haired man wheeled his arms around and stretched. "So, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Lucinox. Are you ready to return to your world?"

Riku looked at Lucinox. There was something suspicious about this man. Of all the people in Traverse Town, this one just stood out from the others. But why? Why is this person here of all places?

"No. We are actually looking for someone and something." Sora told him. "We are looking for someone name Caserta."

"Caserta, huh?" The man raised an eyebrow. "I've heard that name before."

"Do you know where he is?" Donald asked.

"We are looking for him." Goofy also supplied.

Lucinox put his index and middle fingers on his forehead and closed his eyes, deep in thought. "Well, if you help me with something, I can help you with your problem."

Sora was trying to figure something about Lucinox. Something inside of him told the spiky haired Keyblader that he knew this guy somehow. He couldn't figure out why that was. This was his first time meeting him, he was sure. So why then?

"We can help you, Lucinox." Sora told him.

Riku took him aside. "Sora, I'm not sure that we should trust him yet. We don't even know him."

"Riku, we have no other clue to find this Caserta guy." Sora placed his hands on Riku's shoulders. "We don't have to trust him but it doesn't hurt to listen to him for now."

Riku's eyes widened. When did Sora become so mature? The silver haired teen smirked. "I'll follow you wherever you go."

Sora smiled widely. "Alright then." Sora returned to Lucinox. "What is it that you want?"

Lucinox's face turned grave. "There have been rumors of something attacking people in the second district."

Sora's eyes narrowed. "Heartless!" He growled.

"It's not a Heartless, they say." Lucinox told him. "They say it's a large creature with a crown on its head."

_A crown_, everyone thought. _Could it be the crown that the king is looking for_?

"Some have seen this creature in the Second District." Lucinox finished. "If you are going to go, please be careful. I have to help some other people return to their home."

Lucinox jogged off to help a family with returning to their home, leaving the group to discuss their next move.

"So what do we do?" Kairi asked.

"We should investigate." Sora said.

"Should we trust this guy?" Riku put out there.

"Well, he doesn't seem like a bad guy." Goofy added. "I get a good vibe from him."

"Still, we should be a bit careful." Donald answered. "A bit of caution is prudent. That's what Master Yen Sid always told us."

"Master Yen Sid?" Sora asked. "Who is he?"

"He's the person who trained the King in the art of the Keyblade and magic. He's very powerful."

Kairi waved her hands to get the group's attention. "So what are we going to do?"

"I guess we should investigate the Second District." Sora said to everyone.

"It could be a trap." Riku told him.

"What else can we do?" Sora responded. "Let's just go and be careful.

Sora led the way to the Second District of Traverse Town.

* * *

The Second District was eerily quiet. The group of five was looking for any signs of life and couldn't find any, not even Heartless.

Unbeknownst to them, two shadowy figures were watching this group as they explored the Second District.

"My lady," One of the figures said in a masculine voice. "It seems as though all of the players in this performance have arrived: the two Keyblade wielders, the Princess of Heart, even the Knight Errant. Shall we begin?"

The female figure nodded. "You may proceed."

The man made some hand gestures.

_Those who are born in sin, come forth. The Cruel Angel demands it._

Dark energies started forming behind Sora and the gang without them realizing it.

**SHADOW HEARTLESS**

Dozens of Shadow Heartless formed from the dark energies.

Sora felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and turned around, seeing the Heartless.

"Heartless!" Sora growled.

Sora, Riku, Donald and Goofy drew their weapons. Kairi put her hands to her chest.

_Oh Rose of the Noble Heart_

_The Power that sleeps with in me_

_Heed the call of thy master _

_And appear before me_

As she chanted this spell, the weapon Namine appeared as a hilt. She grabbed it and pulled the Soul Sword from her body.

"Let's go." Sora commanded as he charged the Heartless. The others are not far behind.

Sora swung his Keyblade at one of the Heartless and it was cut down. He then clapped his hands together and charged up the Light within him. When he pulled them apart, it reformed into a spear that he grabbed with his right hand.

**BRILLIANT LANCE**

He threw the Lance at the Heartless gang and many were blown apart by the attack.

Riku was cutting the Heartless down with his Keyblade and started to glow with dark power. He felt the power within him grow. He raised his Keyblade skyward.

**DARK AURA**

Riku moved at high speeds, attacking the Heartless rapidly and destroying many of them.

Kairi used the training that Sora and Riku had given her on the island and tried her best to emulate them. She swung her Keyblade down on one of the Shadow Heartless. It just absorbed the blow.

"Why can't I beat this one?" Kairi thought to herself.

"You have to believe in yourself, Kairi." A voice answered in her head.

"Namine?" Kairi thought. "Is that you?"

"Kairi, you have to feel the power within you." Namine told her. "Feel the power."

Kairi closed her eyes. She could feel something within the pit of her stomach. That something in her stomach started to warm her whole body. She could feel it. This was power.

She charged the Heartless again and swung at it. This time, the Heartless fell and disappeared into the Void.

"I did it." Kairi yelled out, alerting some of the Heartless to her presence. "Oops." She muttered. She brandished her weapon at the Heartless, trying to look as menacing as possible.

**THUNDARA**

Lightning fell from the sky, smiting the Heartless and destroying them. Donald sidled next to Kairi.

"Don't worry, Kairi." Donald nodded. "I've got your back."

Heartless surrounded the two.

**GOOFY WHIRLWIND**

Goofy spun around the enemies, hitting them with his shield. The Heartless dissipated with that blow.

With handy teamwork and their strength, the Heartless were defeated.

Sora wiped his brow. "Is that it for the Heartless attack?"

The two figures watched as the five of them defeated the Heartless.

"Not bad for rookies." The masculine voice chuckled. "Shall I set the difficulty higher, my lady?"

"You may." The feminine voice responded. "Proceed!"

"As you command."

_Those who have consumed themselves in their own self-righteousness, come forth. The Cruel Angel demands it._

**AURA MARTYR**

Sora and the gang felt a power around them. A luminous power surrounded them, taking the form of a dog with a head twice the size of its body.

"What are these creatures?" Sora asked

"They kind of look like Heartless." Kairi said.

"But with Light." Riku added.

"Whatever they are, they don't look friendly." Sora answered, brandishing his Keyblade.

One of the Aura Martyrs moved to attack. Sora struck it down with one swing of his Keyblade. However, when Sora hit it, it spilt into two Auras

"They split." Sora gasped

"Let me try." Donald yelled.

**BLIZZARA**

Donald casts a powerful ice dagger and launches it at the Aura. It just bounced off of it harmlessly.

"What do we do now?" Sora asked.

Riku moved closer to Sora. "We need to stick together."

There was a faint glow on their clothes. Sora and Riku both noticed it.

"Riku." Sora gasped. "The clothes."

Sora and Riku felt something in their hearts, like a door unlocking.

**EXECUTE LIMIT BREAKER: ETERNAL SESSION**

Sora and Riku hovered slightly off of the ground and started attacking the enemies with a series of stabs.

**LAST SABER**

Sora swung his Keyblade at the Auras, destroying some of them.

**DARK CANNON**

Riku summoned Darkness to wipe out several Auras.

"Let's crank it up an notch, Riku." Sora smirked.

"Whenever you're ready." Riku nodded.

**MASTER HEARTS**

Sora and Riku's Keyblades were filled with Light and Darkness respectively, creating a field that extended the length of the Keyblades. While hovering, they swirled around the enemies and slashed them.

**XIII BLADES**

Sora and Riku created blades of Light and Darkness to surround them as they attacked the Auras with their combined might.

"Let's finish this, Sora." Riku growled.

"I'm with you." Sora responded.

**ALL'S END**

Sora and Riku threw their Keyblades into the air and, from them, Light and Darkness shot from their Keyblades at each other. This dichotomy drew in the Aura Martyrs into the epicenter, destroying them.

"That was great." Kairi clapped her hands. "You two are so strong."

"Where did you learn an attack like that?" Goofy asked.

"I don't know." Sora admitted. "It was like I already knew it."

"I think it has something to do with the clothes." Riku postulated. "They were glowing before we started the attack."

The two figures above them watched silently. "It has very little to do with the clothes." The feminine voice said. "The clothes, which are the gift of the Knight Errant, only relax the constraints of the body, allowing them to reach deep within themselves and activate powers sooner."

"However, since they are not used to the powers they have, it will come at a price." The masculine voice chuckled.

Sora and Riku collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

Kairi ran to both of their sides. "Are you guys alright?" She asked.

"Just exhausted." Riku told her. He smiled at her and it made her heart flutter.

"We'll be fine." Sora gasped for air.

Before he could say anything more, there was a loud thud.

Kairi, Donald and Goofy readied their weapons. Sora and Riku tried to but they couldn't stand.

"Don't worry, you two." Goofy said. "We'll protect you."

"So, just stay there while we fight." Donald trumpeted.

"This time, I'll protect you two." Kairi smiled back at Sora and Riku. "Trust me."

Sora and Riku could do nothing but nod. They had to believe in the girl that they both loved.

Kairi stood with Donald and Goofy, ready for anything.

A humanoid statue walked from the area of the clock tower. It was a head and a half taller than Goofy and proportionally larger. It was carrying a sword and shield. But on its head was an ornate gold crown.

"Is that the crown the King was looking for?" Goofy mused aloud.

"Let's just beat it now and get it." Donald told him. "Worry about whether it's the right one later."

The statue raised its sword in the air. "Puny ones," The statue spoke in a booming voice. "You have no hope of defeating me. I will smash you to dust."

"I won't let that happen." Kairi shouted back.

The statue slowly made its way towards the three warriors. Donald took this chance to raise his staff in the air.

**WATERA**

Donald cast a powerful water spell on the statue. However, it had little effect on it.

"Such a puny spell, mage." The statue bellowed. "A spell of that level will never defeat me."

Kairi and Goofy looked at each other and nodded. They charged the statue, planning a synchronized attack. With all of their might, they struck the statue's legs, Kairi with her Soul Sword and Goofy with his shield. There was the loud sound of metal hitting metal.

"What a pathetic attack!" The statue roared. "Let me show you true power."

With a massive swing, the statue used its sword to strike the two. Goofy used his shield to absorb the blow but the force of the attack threw the two of them away.

"Kairi!" Sora and Riku yelled in fear of what happened to her.

Kairi got up from the blow that she received. She was scuffed up but otherwise fine. Goofy, however, found that his shield was destroyed by the attack.

"Sorry, Kairi." Goofy lamented. "I need some time to repair my shield."

"Don't worry." Kairi smiled. "I can do this."

The statue laughed. "Puny girl! What can you do?"

The Soul Sword, Namine, began to glow. Kairi looked down to see that it was radiating power.

"What is it that you are trying to tell me, Namine?" Kairi asked

The Soul Sword responded by vibrating violently. "Believe in yourself, Kairi." She responded. "You have the power within you."

Kairi closed her eyes. She could feel the power within her. A strong Pulse pulsated in her.

The statue laughed. "Have you given up, little girl?"

"I know what I need to do." Kairi said resolutely. She took the vibrating Soul Sword in her hand and raised it skyward.

The statue scoffed. "Is this your way of defying your inevitable fate?"

Kairi charged at the statue. "I will protect Riku and Sora."

**VIBRA EDGE**

Kairi attacked the statue. The statue used its shield to defend itself.

"Pathetic." The statue laughed. "Is that the best you can do?"

Kairi just yelled in response as she continued to push her Soul Sword against the shield.

The statue didn't realize that the Soul Sword was still vibrating and that a crack had began to form where the Sword was.

"Foolish girl. You have no power."

However, right at that instant, the shield that the statue wielded shattered. With the shield gone, Kairi's attack moved towards the statue's leg. However, it jumped out of the way before it could get harmed.

"I underestimated you, girl." The statue sneered. "But it won't happen again. Count on it."

The statue raised its sword to the sky.

**TECTONIC SLAM**

With all of its might, the statue thrust its sword into the ground. What resulted was violent rumblings that caused Kairi to be unsteady on her feet.

"Girl, know despair." The statue yelled as it grabbed its sword from the ground and charged.

**BLIZZARA**

Donald cast his Blizaara spell on the ground, making it slippery. The statue, on unsteady ground, slipped and fell down. When it did that, the shakings stopped.

"Are you okay, Kairi?" Donald asked.

"I'm fine." She responded. "Thank you."

Sora looked at this seen in anger. "If I wasn't so drained, I would turn that statue into rocks."

Riku looked at his male lover. He was thinking the same thing. "Little by little, we'll regain our strength." He told Sora. "Then we'll strike."

Sora wasn't satisfied with this answer. But what else could he do? "Then I'll believe in Kairi." He smiled. "Yep! That's what I'll do."

Sora cupped his hands around his mouth. "You can do this, Kairi." He shouted loudly. "We believe in you."

Riku, not wanting to be outdone, cupped his own hands around his mouth. "Smash this thing to pieces. You have all the power you need to do it."

Hearing their words encouraged her. She felt her Soul pulsating with power. In that instant, time stood still.

Kairi looked around. Everything around her stopped. The statue was just getting up from the ground. However, it was frozen in place. Donald was about to cast another spell and was frozen as well. Goofy was trying to rebuild his shield by putting the pieces together and wasn't moving either. Sora and Riku was stopped as well.

"What is going on?" Kairi wondered aloud.

As she asked, a column of light appeared before her. Her eyes widened. "What is this?"

The column of light pulsated. "I greet you, Princess of Heart." It spoke with a garbled voice, not designating that the voice was masculine or feminine.

"What are you?" Kairi asked.

"I am the Garnet Guardian." It responded.

"The Garnet Guardian?" She asked. "What does that mean?"

"I am a being connected with reality." It answered, giving no clear answer as to what it meant.

"I don't get it." Kairi admitted.

"Because you are not ready to know." It responded. "But in time, you will because we are connected."

"Connected?" Kairi repeated.

"I have come to give you power, Princess of Heart." The Garnet Guardian told her. "Your power is the power to connect your Heart with others. You can bring out the power within others and, in turn, they will bring out the power within you."

Kairi had to smile when she heard that. She wanted to be useful and hearing that made her confident that she would be.

"It also means that you can contract with beings that are not human, allowing you to use their power." The Garnet Guardian explained. "These beings, known as the Mysteries, will come to your aid."

"The Mysteries?" Kairi wondered

"In ancient times, people would create cults devoted to these fantastic creatures. These cults would be known as the Mysteries." The Garnet Guardian explained

"Does this mean I have to join a cult?" Kairi was perplexed. She had no intention of joining one.

"No. I'm just explaining the history of the Mysteries."

"But what does any of this have to do with me?" Kairi asked.

As soon as she did, fairy-like creatures appeared before her. "What are these?"

"These are the Sylphs, fey creatures that will obey your command." The Garnet Guardian told her. "They can be summoned to do your bidding. However, be forewarned. The strength of your heart determines how useful the Mysteries will be and should your heart falter, they will turn against you."

Kairi nodded.

"Then, I shall leave you to your fight." The Garnet Guardian told Kairi. "We shall meet again and, perhaps next time, you will be able to perceive my true appearance."

Kairi prepared as everything returned back to normal. Donald had just finished casting his spell to use against the statue.

**STARFALL**

Dozens of meteors fall from the sky, heading straight for the statue. The statue takes up a defensive stance. However, before the meteors hit it, they dissipate.

Kairi was shocked. "What happened?" She yelled out.

Donald fell to the floor without grace. "I'm tapped out of magic power."

"Bwahahaha!" The statue bellowed. "Seems as though you are the only one here with any hope of opposing me. Although, to say that you have no hope at all would be more apt."

Kairi glared hard at the statue. "Don't underestimate me."

Kairi raised her Soul Sword towards the sky.

_Unseal, the fey forest creatures_

**SYLPHS**

A glowing light shone around Kairi, to the awe of the people around her. The light took form on the left and right of her. Flanking the Princess of Hearts were two girls in plain white dresses and laurels on their heads. The girl on her left was wielding a staff while the girl on her right was had a bow.

"Wow, sister." The girl on Kairi's right whistled. "It's been a long time since we've been summoned."

"Yeah, sister." The girl on Kairi's left responded. "It's a girl and a pretty one at that."

The two turned to Kairi who began to get nervous at the attention.

"What is your name?" One of the girls asked

"What is your sign?" The other girl asked.

"What's your favorite food?"

"What's your favorite flower?"

"What are your hobbies?"

They asked her question after question and she couldn't keep up with them. She began to get dizzy.

"Wait, wait, please?" She begged. "Can we please focus?"

The two fey creatures were silent for a second. Kairi thought that she had gotten through to them.

"WAHHH" They both cried. "She yelled at us."

Kairi didn't know how to take this. On one hand, she didn't want to see anyone cry because of her. On the other, there was a statue with killing intent still around and she didn't feel like being hurt by it.

However, the statue took the initiative and readied its sword to attack. Kairi noticed it and jumped out of the way before she was hit.

"What good is this power if you can't subjugate and control it?" The statue bellowed.

Kairi glared hard but said nothing.

The two fey spirits looked at the statue with disdain.

"You hurt our mistress." The sylphs said in unison. "We will destroy you."

The sylph with the bow gathered Pulse and created arrows. She shot them from her bow.

**SYLPH ARROW**

The arrows headed towards the statue which deflected them with its sword.

"Is that all the power you command?" The statue yelled.

The sylph with the staff gathered Pulse into her staff. It transformed into a giant hammer.

**SYLPH HAMMER**

The sylph charged with her hammer and swung it down upon the statue which used its sword to defend itself.

"Not bad." It grunted. "However, if this is all of the power at your disposal, then you will never defeat me."

With its sword, it pushed the sylph away from the statue. The hammer dissipated and returned to being a staff.

The sylphs looked at Kairi, sadness in their eyes. "We're sorry, mistress." They said in unison. "But our connection isn't strong enough to face him at this time."

With that, the sylphs faded and disappeared.

Kairi felt completely drained after they disappeared. She looked at Sora and Riku. She failed them. She couldn't protect them. Kairi admitted to herself that she was weak.

"What good is my strength?" Kairi cried to herself. "I can't even protect the ones I loved."

The statue moved towards Kairi. "You have no strength." The statue told her. "Accept this and die."

The statue raised its sword to the sky. Kairi closed her eyes and waited for the blow to come. She did not hear Sora and Riku call out to her. "I'm sorry." Kairi whispered. "I'm not all that strong."

But the blow never came. She heard the sound of two weapons clashing.

Kairi opened her eyes and saw someone with long hair in front of her, long green hair in fact.

"So this is your collective strength." The person said. "So be it."

The statue growled at the person. The man had a silver Keyblade in his hand. "So who are you?"

"Lucinox!" Kairi gasped in surprise.

"Lucinox." The statue repeated. "What an arrogant name."

Lucinox raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Any name with an x is obviously trying to be cooler and stronger than he actually is." The statue snarled.

Lucinox closed his eyes and smirked. "Really? I had not heard that."

The statue lifted its sword. "No matter." The statue bellows. "I will crush you and your supposed strength and coolness here and now."

The statue brought its sword to strike Lucinox. Lucinox prepared and, with one swing of his Keyblade, destroyed the sword of the statue. The statue moved back in shock.

"How inconsequential." Lucinox smiled. "You have very little Pulse. There's no way you can defeat me."

The statue looked defiantly at the long-haired man. "We shall see, haughty human."

Lucinox closed his eyes and waved his right hand around.

_Eternal Light, ever true and undefiled, grant this wanton sinner the majesty of thy judgment_.

**WAY OF DESTRUCTION #22: RAY**

A ball of light appeared before the statue and, in an instant, beams of Light shot out from it, breaking through the statue's hard body. The force of the attack destroyed much of the structural tension in the statue. After all, it was an inanimate object brought to life.

The statue crumbled until only the head was left. "This isn't the end, human." The statue's head yelled in vain. "You will be…"

Lucinox narrowed his eyes at the head of the statue. "You have served your purpose." He smiled. "Now it is time to give back what I gave to you."

The long haired man grabbed the crown from the head of the statue and it returned to being an inanimate object. "That's that." He whispered.

Lucinox turned back around and looked at the five before him. Sora and Riku were still struggling to get to their feet, Goofy was nearly finished with repairing his shield, Donald was still exhausted of his magic and Kairi was slumped to the ground in defeat.

The long haired man weaved hand gestures.

**VALKYRIE'S EMBRACE**

A green light shone around the group, restoring their strength in full. Everyone stood to determine whether this man was friend or foe.

Lucinox smirked. "I believe introductions are in order. My name is Lucinox Cortis Caserta, also known as the Knight Errant."

Riku glowered at the man in front of him. "I thought you said you were going to help us find him if we defeated the enemies."

"I never said that." Lucinox responded. "I told you that I would help you with your problem."

"So you lied." Riku growled.

"I didn't lie." Lucinox stared down Riku. "I just choose my words very carefully."

"So you were the one who sent the Heartless and the white creatures after us?" Sora asked.

"I sent the living statue against you as a test." Lucinox explained. "Leon asked me to do this to judge where you are, power-wise. And now I know."

"A test?" Kairi shuddered. "All of the pain we endured was all a test?" She was on the verge of tears.

Lucinox steeled his gaze. "The enemy will not be kind, Kairi." He took a thoughtful breath and continued. "The path of a warrior is a path drenched in blood, sweat and tears. If you choose to walk on it, prepare to shed many of these things."

He looked at everyone. "Nothing comes without sacrifice. In order to obtain that which you seek, you must be willing to give up time, ignorance, and comfort. This is your last chance to back away from this. From here on, you will experience the horrors of battle. Even so, do you still choose this path?"

Sora regarded this individual carefully. He is the man who put Riku and Kairi through their respective trials to gain power. There was something he couldn't explain inside him. It was like he had a connection within him. But he had never met the guy before the events on Destiny Island. So what was it? In any case, he knew that Juusan Kikan was interested in Kairi as a Princess of Heart and his and Riku's powers over Light and Darkness respectively. He wouldn't allow any harm to those he loved. Remembering the vow that he made to the other Princesses of Heart, Sora was the first to stand and answer. "I won't let anything happen to the ones I care about. I'll fight."

Kairi was shocked by Sora's definite answer. Here was the Knight Errant, the man who had given her the power to summon her Soul Sword. And yet, he was the source of all of her misery. He was the one who told her only a warrior can understand another warrior. She was conflicted. Here she was, trying to prove that she was strong enough to stand as a warrior in her own right and she was protected again. She didn't like it. She needed to get stronger. If this guy, this Lucinox character, was going to give her strength, she would take it. "I want to get stronger. Please, train me."

Riku did not like the long haired guy from the get go. From the first time, he met the guy as the Knight Errant, there was something off with the guy. The silver haired teen couldn't put his finger on it but SOMETHING about Lucinox Caserta, the Knight Errant rubbed him the wrong way. Perhaps it was the fact that he used darkness. Maybe it was the fact that he also wielded a Keyblade. Maybe it was the overall attitude of the guy who knew more than he was letting others know. Something didn't sit right with him. Riku trusted his instinct. This guy was bad news. "I don't trust you at all." Riku flatly told Lucinox.

"I don't expect you to trust me right now." Lucinox said with finality. "That may or may not come with time. However, what I will do for you is make you stronger, teach you about the world around you, about Pulse, Magic, everything. What you do with that power is entirely up to you."

Goofy spoke up at that moment. "What about that crown? What is the story with that?"

Lucinox held up the crown. "This is known as Keter, the Crown of Divine Will. It is one of ten Sephirae."

"Sephirae?" Donald questioned.

"The singular is Sephira." Lucinox explained. "The plural is Sephirae. These ten items have incredible power on their own but together create something incredible."

"What?" Sora asked, now curious about the crown.

"I can honestly say that I don't know. No one in recent memory has ever brought all of the Sephirae together." Lucinox's countenance darkened. "Juusan Kikan can NOT be allowed to grab the Sephirae, just as they can NOT be allowed to gather the Princesses of Heart."

That was the one point on which that everyone could agree. The Princesses of Heart could not fall into enemy hands.

"Time is against us." Lucinox told them. "It is always against us. That is why we need to move quickly. So let us depart and head to Disney Castle."

Lucinox walked away from the group with the crown, muttering. "Too much at stake to waste time standing here."

Sora looked at the other four and sighed. "I guess there's nothing left to do but to go back to Disney Castle."

Riku pulled him aside. "Listen! I don't trust this guy."

Sora stretched his limbs. "Neither do I. But what choice do we have? For now, let's just go back."

With that said, Sora and the gang headed back to the gummiship. Their destination was Disney Castle.

* * *

And thus the chapter ends. I know this was probably very difficult to follow with Sora and Kairi's cutscene. It can get a bit confusing but these concepts will be addressed in later chapters so just hold on to it for now. The next couple of chapters will deal with how the Dearly Beloved Kingdom Hearts world works, with explanations about Magic and power. It will be an interesting read and it will explain enough about this story that you can follow. Also, be on the lookout for another sex scene.

Sparky Out


End file.
